California ordered utilities to develop a joint distributed energy resource orchestration framework and more explicitly consider flexible demand.

Utility Dive reported that California ordered utilities to develop a joint framework for orchestrating distributed energy resources (DERs). The underlying order was issued in October, with the supplied article published on November 11.

The order also directed Pacific Gas and Electric, Southern California Edison, and San Diego Gas & Electric to consider flexible demand more explicitly. This is a regulatory instruction to develop a coordinated framework, rather than evidence that the framework is already operating.

One regulator said the approach could reduce interconnection delays, but the excerpt reports no measured reduction or completed connection enabled by the order. It also supplies no capacity target, implementation deadline, or data-center-specific participation requirement.