One problem is when an event like this happened in New Zealand, other retailers didn't accept new customers at this time. I mean, would you accept new customers paying 20 cents a kWh when the market rate is 500 cents a kWh?
a) Extra charge is forgiven?
b) Someone else picks up the tab?
c) They are stuck paying it?
And how do you deal with this big picture?
a) Require better legal language in the contracts to sign up for this
b) Ban these kind of contracts, because the user isn't "smart" enough to know how they work
Similar things happen in a floodplain where no one will issue flood insurance. It's mostly fine, until it isn't.
Having a massive virtual peaker plant (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peaking_power_plant) is a neat idea. Telsa, another new business idea for you!
My Model Y has a 75 kWh of battery just sitting in my garage, and S/X owners have 100 kWh (maybe 90 after refresh?). Really wish Teslas could use a vehicle to grid to somehow tie into a homebase powerwall for this kind of situation. My understanding is there is no inbuilt way to get more than what is needed to charge the 12V out of a Tesla...
Flood insurance for a house purchase is very different from a afterthought utility bill that, really, you have no "choice" on procuring.
a) (default choice): Use as much power you as you want, 12c a kWh, it never changes.
b) (other supplier choice): Pay market rate! Currently only 9c a kWh, save 3c per kWh! (Until this event, when it went to $1000 a kWh).
Consumer opted into B to save some cash, but got hit with the downside of their bet.
It’s an unconscionable business model with no guardrails. Commercial users don’t sign up for rates like that without breakers or hedges.
So then we just ban users from such programs?
(I don't know the answer, but this ends up down a pretty strict path of not letting you hurt yourself).