Demand Flexibility in New York City Buildings

This briefing by RMI explores the benefits of demand flexibility in New York City buildings, highlighting its potential to reduce carbon emissions, lower peak electricity demand, and provide a cost-effective pathway for compliance with Local Law 97.

• Demand flexibility, defined as a building's capacity to shift or shed energy demand based on real-time signals like electricity price or grid carbon intensity, could reduce building emissions in New York City by approximately 40 percent as the grid reaches full decarbonization, particularly if enabled by laws such as Local Law 97.
• Implementing demand flexibility can lower a building's peak electricity consumption by 30 percent to 50 percent during specific hours. This reduction limits reliance on peaker plants, which can lower grid operational and infrastructure costs while providing environmental and health benefits.
• Demand flexibility complements building electrification by increasing the amount of load that can be flexed and minimizing winter peaks. Furthermore, using a time-of-use carbon metric within Local Law 97 offers building owners a cost-effective method for achieving decarbonization and regulatory compliance.

APA

RMI (2021). Demand Flexibility in New York City Buildings. https://rmi.org/resources/demand-flexibility-in-new-york-city-buildings/

Chicago

RMI. Demand Flexibility in New York City Buildings. 2021. https://rmi.org/resources/demand-flexibility-in-new-york-city-buildings/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Demand Flexibility in New York City Buildings |date=2 June 2021 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/demand-flexibility-in-new-york-city-buildings/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2021demand, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Demand Flexibility in New York City Buildings}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2021}, month = jun, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/demand-flexibility-in-new-york-city-buildings/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }