Outcomes of the 2023 RFI solicitation and ideas selection process summarized
CalMTA is excited to release its final report on the outcomes of our first Request for Ideas (RFI) held last summer. This Stage 1 Disposition Report provides details about the RFI process, insights into submissions received, the scoring and selection process used to identify and advance California’s first market transformation ideas, and the future work required to develop them into full initiatives in 2024 and 2025. This report is the first of two parts and summarizes the work completed through Stage 1 scoring.
A second report, due to be completed in June 2024, will provide updates on Batch 1 Market Transformation Initiative (MTI) development and a detailed description of additional idea scoring and recommendations for a second batch of MTIs. These documents fulfill requirements of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) Decision 19-12-021, which established the comprehensive statewide market transformation framework and created CalMTA as the state’s market transformation administrator. CalMTA is a program of the CPUC and is administered by Resource Innovations.
Request for Ideas results
CalMTA’s first RFI, which lasted eight weeks and closed Aug. 18, 2023, resulted in 117 ideas submitted by stakeholders and market actors. Submissions ranged across sectors, but most fell into the residential category. Likewise, there were roughly three times the number of product-focused ideas than those targeting practices. Since then, CalMTA has conducted a rigorous review and scoring process to identify a first batch of MTIs for further development based on criteria that includes energy savings and grid benefits, product readiness, estimated cost/cost-effectiveness, equity considerations, and alignment with market transformation theory.
Over one-third, 34%, of the submitted ideas prominently featured heat pumps. In some cases, these ideas promoted a heat pump as a stand-alone product for heating, cooling, and water heating. In others, they were included as part of broader strategies to improve the overall efficiency of a building or facilitate its decarbonization. There were also ideas geared toward workforce development and training to help accelerate heat pump adoption and create career opportunities for disadvantaged communities.
Other end uses that generated significant interest include food storage and service and opportunities to create efficiency and mitigate the high global warming risk posed by refrigerants. Potential improvements in the efficiency of the cooking process itself were addressed for both residential and commercial kitchens including promotion of induction cooking. The building envelope was the focus of 17 ideas with several related to evolving window products and others that propose utilizing shading and insulating technologies. For commercial and industrial processes, 15 ideas involved process monitoring, controls, and efficient motors and pumps.
Idea review & scoring
A multi-stage review process resulted in prioritization of submitted ideas beginning with an initial threshold review process to ensure that the submission was an appropriate fit for market transformation investment. The 92 ideas that passed threshold review moved into Stage 1 scoring, which ranked them against set criteria based on information that was included in the submission as well as our scoring team’s market expertise and some limited research.
The figure above shows the breakdown of how ideas were ultimately disposed through Stage 1 scoring including three that advanced for further research.
Through this process, 38 ideas addressing similar market segments, technologies, or practices were combined by our team to strengthen the overall MT concept. Of the 54 remaining ideas, 21 of the lowest scoring were archived, 14 were held for further research, and 19 of the top-
ranked ideas were then slated to advance on to Stage 2 scoring, where our team conducts deeper secondary research, investigation, and analysis, including Total System Benefit (TSB) and other cost-effectiveness calculations. Three “frontrunner” Batch 1 ideas were recommended for expedited Advancement Plan development based on market transformation alignment, long-term value of California, and commercial readiness. Advancement Plans describe the research and investigation needed to develop these ideas into full MTI plans later this year.
We are grateful to those who submitted their ideas for consideration and look forward to continued engagement as we move forward with development of future batches of market transformation ideas. This Stage 1 Disposition Report provides a foundational step in that work and CalMTA’s goal of creating a balanced market transformation portfolio that helps meet California’s energy, decarbonization, equity, and workforce development objectives.
A recording of CalMTA’s presentation of the report at a Nov. 30-Dec. 1 meeting of our Market Transformation Advisory Board is also available on our website. The Disposition Report discussion began at the 24-minute mark on Day 1.
