Benefits of implementing a demand response program in a non-regulated market in Colombia

Different energy markets in many countries have been put in place different programs to make electricity demand responsive to prices or reliability needs. In this work we evaluate the consequences of directly translating the prices from the wholesale energy market to the retail energy market as a mechanism to promote changes in energy consumption patterns. We use as a case study a non-regulated market in Colombia to measure the benefits of varying the consumption energy from one hour to another (peak and non-peak hour). We also propose some performance metrics that help utilities and system operators recognize the value of implementing demand response programs. Results show benefits of approximately two hundred million of COP annually and peak reductions of 1%, but these benefits depend on the number of clients who participate in these programs and their load curves.