The ConnectedSolutions demand response program. Eversource bets on smarter home batteries

The ConnectedSolutions demand response program from Eversource pays residential customers for letting the utility tap into their home batteries during peak demand events. The Eversource Energy stock (ISIN US30040W1080) benefits from this product line.

The ConnectedSolutions demand response program by Eversource starts very tangibly: your basement battery hums quietly on a hot August evening while the lights stay on and the grid groans somewhere far away. Product manager Dan Gallo watches the live load curves on his screen as thousands of residential systems respond in seconds.

How ConnectedSolutions works in practice

ConnectedSolutions is Eversource's demand response and battery aggregation program for residential and small commercial customers in New England and parts of New York, designed to reduce peak demand by remotely discharging enrolled devices during specific events. Customers connect eligible home batteries from partners such as Tesla, Sunrun or Enphase through approved installers so the utility can control charging and discharging within defined limits. In return, participants receive performance-based incentive payments, typically measured in dollars per kilowatt (kW) of average power delivered during events over the season.

The program runs primarily during summer and winter peak periods, with Eversource sending automated control signals to enrolled batteries during demand response events that usually last a few hours in the late afternoon or early evening. Customers keep normal backup functionality: in a grid outage, the battery still prioritizes the home, while during normal operation it follows the agreed schedule that optimizes both customer backup needs and grid support.

Incentives and earnings potential for households

For residential customers in Massachusetts and Connecticut, ConnectedSolutions offers annual incentive rates that can add up to several hundred dollars per year for a typical 5 to 10 kW battery system, depending on actual performance during called events. According to Eversource program documentation, the utility pays incentives based on the average power delivered across all events in a season, multiplied by a published per-kW rate that varies by state and customer class. Installers often factor these recurring incentive streams into their sales pitches, showing homeowners how the grid service payments can shorten the payback period of a battery installation by several years.

Eversource emphasizes that customers do not lose control of their systems: they can opt out of individual events if necessary, although doing so reduces their average performance and therefore their payout at the end of the season. Some third-party providers, such as Sunrun, aggregate multiple home batteries into so-called virtual power plants and then enroll this capacity into ConnectedSolutions on behalf of their customers, sharing the utility incentives according to contract terms.

Grid benefits and regulatory angle

From the utility's perspective, ConnectedSolutions turns thousands of small batteries into a flexible resource that can reduce peak load and defer costly upgrades to transformers, substations and transmission lines. Regulatory filings show that Eversource positions the program as a non-wires alternative, arguing that paying customers for demand response can be cheaper than building new infrastructure to handle a handful of high-demand hours each year. Regional grid operator ISO New England has also been expanding rules that allow aggregated distributed energy resources to participate in wholesale markets, which opens an additional revenue stream when Eversource aggregates ConnectedSolutions capacity.

CEO Joe Nolan has highlighted demand response and distributed energy resource integration as part of Eversource's long-term strategy to manage electrification, heat pump growth and electric vehicle charging without overbuilding the grid. In investor presentations, management points to customer programs like ConnectedSolutions as tools to keep system reliability high while meeting state decarbonization targets in Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire. These states have aggressive climate laws and regulators increasingly push utilities to use flexible demand instead of only expanding wires and steel.

Technology stack and partner ecosystem

On the technology side, ConnectedSolutions relies on a mix of cloud-based control platforms, APIs from battery manufacturers and secure communication with home energy management systems. Eversource does not build the hardware itself but certifies compatible devices from vendors including Tesla Powerwall, Enphase IQ Battery, Generac PWRcell and several others that meet performance and communication standards. Installers enroll systems through partner portals, and once approved, the battery starts responding automatically to Eversource dispatch signals during events.

For Sunrun customers, for instance, the company aggregates individual home batteries into a virtual power plant portfolio that it then enrolls into utility programs like ConnectedSolutions. Sunrun reports that its New England virtual power plants can deliver tens of megawatts of capacity during peak events, with a portion of the utility incentive revenue flowing back to participating households. The same basic model applies to other aggregators, although contract details and revenue sharing structures differ.

Participation rules and customer experience

To join ConnectedSolutions, a customer typically must be an Eversource electric customer in an eligible territory and own or install a qualifying battery system through a participating installer. The enrollment process involves signing a participation agreement that explains how often events may occur, the expected discharge profile and how performance will be measured for incentive payments. Once enrolled, customers receive periodic email updates about upcoming peak seasons, program performance summaries and annual incentive statements or bill credits depending on state rules.

During a typical summer event, the home battery gradually ramps up discharge as the regional grid approaches its peak, often coordinated to match ISO New England's predicted system peak hour. From the homeowner's perspective, nothing dramatic happens: the lights stay steady, the air conditioning continues to run, but the battery quietly pushes power back toward the grid instead of drawing from it. Smartphone apps from battery manufacturers usually show the discharge in real time, giving energy-savvy customers a sense of agency.

Regional footprint and program scale

ConnectedSolutions originally launched in Massachusetts and Rhode Island and has since expanded into Connecticut and parts of Eversource's New York service area, in coordination with state energy offices and regulators. Public filings and partner announcements indicate that the aggregated capacity under the program has grown into the tens of megawatts range, with thousands of residential and small commercial customers participating. ISO New England has cited these demand response and distributed resource programs as contributors to reducing regional peak demand growth and easing strain during heat waves.

States use ConnectedSolutions alongside other energy efficiency and electrification incentives: for example, a Massachusetts homeowner might receive a state rebate on the initial battery purchase and then earn ongoing ConnectedSolutions payments for providing grid services. This layered incentive structure helps utilities like Eversource align customer economics with system planning goals, especially as more households adopt rooftop solar, EVs and heat pumps.

Revenue relevance and stock context

For retail investors, the interesting angle is how a program like ConnectedSolutions fits into Eversource's broader earnings mosaic. The company books program costs and benefits within regulated utility frameworks, with regulators typically allowing cost recovery plus a return on certain investments, while wholesale market participation and avoided infrastructure spending can contribute to longer-term capital efficiency. Management presentations suggest that while individual programs remain small relative to total revenue, they are strategically important as building blocks for future virtual power plant and flexible demand businesses.

That nuance matters because it shows why Eversource invests in software-heavy offerings that do not look like classic poles-and-wires projects but still support its role as a regulated grid operator. For now, the utility mainly reports ConnectedSolutions and related initiatives within broader demand response and distributed energy resource categories rather than as a separate line item. The Eversource Energy share is listed on the New York Stock Exchange in US dollars under the ISIN US30040W1080.

Key facts on ConnectedSolutions

• Product: ConnectedSolutions demand response program
• Manufacturer: Eversource Energy
• Category: Flagship/Bestseller (customer program)
• Market launch: phased introduction from late 2010s in New England
• MSRP / Price: No direct fee; customers earn performance-based incentives
• Availability: Selected Eversource territories in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and parts of New York
• Target group: Residential and small commercial electric customers with eligible battery systems
• Highlight / USP: Aggregates home batteries into a virtual power plant, paying customers to support the grid during peak demand