New York energy regulators have cleared the way for Con Edison customers to get paid for letting the utility tap their home batteries during summer crunch time. On April 16, the state approved changes to its demand-response programs that let customer-owned batteries and other behind-the-meter devices respond during peak grid events. The order gives Con Edison the green light to add a Bring Your Own Battery option to its Direct Load Control program and trims paperwork for other utilities, which state officials say should boost participation, cut peak costs and reduce emissions.
What the commission ordered
In an order detailed by the New York State Public Service Commission, regulators updated the state’s Dynamic Load Management programs and signed off on several changes. The package includes an expansion of Con Edison’s Direct Load Control program so it can formally support a Bring Your Own Battery option. “Dynamic load management provides substantial benefits to customers, the electric system, distribution utilities, and the State,” Commission Chair Rory M. Christian said in the release.
The commission also told utilities to supply more detailed data on term DLM and auto-DLM offerings so regulators can fine-tune performance rules, participation requirements and overall design. It is the kind of technical homework that does not make headlines but determines how much real money customers can earn for showing up when the grid is stressed.
NYSERDA and the incentives
Guidance from NYSERDA shows how those rules tie directly into state battery rebates. New York’s residential energy-storage incentive will require customers to enroll in a qualifying Bring Your Own Battery or aggregation program if they want to claim incentives for new battery projects.
The requirement kicks in on a staggered schedule, with an original-equipment manufacturer onboarding grace period that runs through June 1, 2026. NYSERDA’s overview notes that National Grid, NYSEG and RG&E territories will be covered for projects applying on or after March 1, 2026. Con Edison and other territories will see the rule start when their Bring Your Own Battery programs launch. NYSERDA has also set out verification steps so enrollment is confirmed before any incentive checks go out the door.
How Con Edison and vendors are preparing
On the utility side, Consolidated Edison has already begun lining up help. Procurement documents posted by Con Edison seek contractors to run its Direct Load Control portfolio and list Bring Your Own Battery as a program component, with an expected launch later in 2026.
The request for proposals shows Con Edison wants vendors to handle the full stack, from customer enrollment and telemetry to event dispatch when the grid is under pressure. The regulatory action was also reported by S&P Global, underscoring that this is not just a niche pilot but a key piece of the utility’s broader demand-response strategy.
What customers can expect
For homeowners eyeing a battery, the obvious question is how much this is worth. NYSERDA’s overview puts the current Bring Your Own Battery price signal at roughly $50 per kilowatt-year. In practical terms, that works out to about $180 a year for a typical 13.5 kWh battery that discharges 80% during a three-hour call event, with annual payments based on measured performance.
Programs will rely on battery telemetry to calculate how much energy a system actually delivers during events, and they will credit exports back to the grid. Depending on how each utility designs its program, payments can flow directly to customers or to authorized third parties such as aggregators or installers.
Installers and customers are being urged to keep a close eye on OEM onboarding lists and verification procedures so systems qualify for NYSERDA rebates after the grace period ends. Missing a paperwork deadline in this case can mean leaving state money on the table.
Why this matters for the grid and bills
Supporters say that knitting thousands of home batteries and smart devices into virtual power plants can flatten the evening and heat-wave peaks that normally drive some of the most expensive grid upgrades. That can help hold down costs for everyone on the system, not just the people with batteries in their basements or garages.
Reporting by New York Focus cites a Brattle Group analysis that finds broad grid flexibility could save New Yorkers billions by 2040 and help offset supply shortfalls flagged by the New York Independent System Operator. At the same time, experts caution that scaling these programs will require strong IT systems, clear data-privacy protections and solid consumer safeguards so customers do not lose the backup power they were counting on when an outage hits.
What is next
According to the commission’s release, the Public Service Commission has instructed utilities to continue reporting on their programs and to deliver more granular data so regulators can keep refining Dynamic Load Management over time. Utilities in Con Edison territory still have to finalize detailed program manuals and OEM onboarding steps before they can open the doors for enrollment.
NYSERDA and the utilities are expected to publish participating OEM lists and program timelines in the coming weeks. For New Yorkers thinking about buying a battery, regulators and industry sources recommend checking those lists and the timing of NYSERDA rules before filing for incentives, to make sure the system and installer qualify when the new requirements fully kick in.
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