South Carolina’s utility regulator has approved a new Duke Energy program that pays businesses to put their batteries to work for the grid. The Public Service Commission greenlit PowerShare Storage, a demand response program open to commercial, industrial, government, and other nonresidential customers, which offers bill credits in exchange for enrolling qualifying energy storage systems as flexible grid resources. The program is set to launch in August 2026.
Program approval and eligibility
The Public Service Commission of South Carolina’s approval clears the way for Duke Energy to formally launch PowerShare Storage as a structured demand response offering. Eligible participants span a wide range of nonresidential customer types — commercial businesses, industrial facilities, government entities, and other organizations outside the residential category. The core requirement is simple: customers must enroll a qualifying energy storage system. Program operations are scheduled to begin in August 2026.
The approval marks a meaningful expansion of demand response options for South Carolina’s business community. Residential customers have had access to battery flexibility programs for some time, but nonresidential customers previously lacked any comparable structured pathway to earn credits by contributing stored energy back to the grid.
Why Duke Energy created the program
The Carolinas are growing fast, and the electric grid is feeling the pressure. Rising population and increasing energy demand have made it harder to maintain reliable service during peak periods — particularly winter mornings and summer evenings, when consumption spikes and grid strain runs highest. Customer-sited battery storage offers a practical way to ease that pressure without building additional generation capacity.
When a battery storage system is enrolled in a demand response program, it can store surplus energy during off-peak hours and release it precisely when the grid needs it most. That flexibility helps accommodate more renewable generation while keeping reliability intact.
PowerShare Storage extends this model beyond homes. Duke Energy already operates battery flexibility solutions for residential customers; this program brings comparable options to commercial, industrial, and government accounts. The scale of existing participation speaks for itself: nearly 500,000 customers across the Carolinas already take part in Duke Energy demand response programs, collectively helping reduce system-wide costs and strengthen grid reliability.
Bill credit structure and incentive details
The program offers participating customers four distinct types of financial incentives, structured to provide predictable returns over time.
The first is a one-time connectivity credit of $120 per kilowatt, paid when a customer’s system meets the program’s connection requirements. Customers whose battery storage systems are charged using renewable energy sources may qualify for an additional $30 per kilowatt on top of that base credit.
The second is a monthly capacity credit of $3.50 per enrolled kilowatt. This ongoing payment is adjusted by a factor for system losses, which is independently verified rather than self-reported — a detail that adds real transparency to how credits are calculated. The third is an energy curtailment credit of $0.10 per kilowatt-hour for energy discharged during curtailment events within each billing cycle. Together, these credit types are designed to give customers a reliable financial return in exchange for making their stored energy available when grid conditions call for it.
Operational rules and customer flexibility
Enrolling in PowerShare Storage means agreeing to let Duke Energy temporarily discharge a customer’s battery system when needed. The utility may activate enrolled systems between 30 and 36 times per year, with each individual event capped at four hours — giving customers a defined upper bound on how often and how long their systems will be called upon.
Customers also retain meaningful flexibility. Each enrolled participant may opt out of up to four events per year, including up to two during winter months, while still remaining eligible for bill credits. That opt-out provision matters: businesses with legitimate operational reasons to retain full battery capacity on specific days aren’t forced to choose between program participation and their own energy needs. Businesses interested in enrolling should reach out to their Duke Energy utility account representative or contact the program directly at [email protected].
Broader grid and policy context
Duke Energy is one of the largest energy holding companies in the United States, serving 8.7 million electric customers across North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky, with 55,700 megawatts of total energy capacity. PowerShare Storage fits within a broader energy modernization strategy the company describes as focused on grid upgrades and efficient generation resources.
Demand response participation carries benefits that reach well beyond enrolled customers. When distributed storage reduces peak demand across the grid, it helps keep electricity rates lower for everyone — enrolled or not.
South Carolina’s policy environment also played a role. Tim Pearson, Duke Energy’s South Carolina president, pointed to the South Carolina Energy Security Act of 2025 as enabling the kind of innovation PowerShare Storage represents, describing the program as consistent with what that legislation calls for.
Key takeaways: The Public Service Commission of South Carolina has approved PowerShare Storage, a Duke Energy demand response program launching in August 2026. Nonresidential customers who enroll a qualifying battery storage system can earn a one-time connectivity credit, a monthly capacity credit, and an energy curtailment credit. Duke Energy may discharge enrolled systems up to 36 times annually, with each event limited to four hours, and customers may opt out of up to four events per year without losing credit eligibility.
Carlos is an engineer with strong expertise in technical and industrial topics. He previously worked at international companies such as Siemens and speaks Spanish, German, English, and Italian.
