Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC)

At a glance

Flip is the battery aggregator behind Old Dominion Electric Cooperative's Home Battery Program. Flip connected ODEC's existing DERMS to more than a dozen battery brands, launched the program in weeks, and delivered every event of its first summer season.

The challenge

ODEC buys and generates power for its member co-ops across several PJM zones, where summer peaks drive a large share of capacity and transmission costs. Virginia's demand is climbing fast, much of it from data centers, and co-op members feel it in their bills.

Home batteries can shave those peaks, but a co-op faces hurdles an investor-owned utility doesn't:

• A DERMS already in place. ODEC dispatches through its own DERMS, Demand Side Tools, so any battery partner has to plug into that system rather than replace it.
• Many co-ops, one program. ODEC runs the program on behalf of independent member co-ops, each with its own members, territory and timeline.
• Every brand, not a favorite. Members own batteries from many manufacturers, and a member-owned co-op can't serve only one brand.
• Lean teams. Co-ops don't have large program staffs to manage device integrations, enrollment or customer questions.
• Members' trust. Co-ops answer to their members, so the program had to be simple, fair and legally sound across three states.

What Flip did

Flip had the program live on July 1, 2026, within weeks of kickoff, ready for the first summer peak.

Plugging into ODEC's DERMS. Flip integrated with ODEC's existing DERMS, Demand Side Tools. Batteries were new to both ODEC and its DERMS, so Flip abstracted away every technical detail: ODEC simply calls an event, such as "dispatch this co-op from 3 to 6 p.m.", and Flip translates it into commands for every battery brand, then streams telemetry back so ODEC sees how its fleet performed.

Every major brand at launch. Flip brought more than a dozen manufacturers into the program on day one, including Tesla, so co-op members could join with the battery they already owned.

A rollout co-op by co-op. Flip launched with Delaware Electric Cooperative and has added more member co-ops since. Each new co-op joins the same platform, with more on the way.

Program design and compliance. Flip worked with ODEC's team on program terms, eligibility and enrollment, and on legal reviews covering members' data privacy in Virginia, Maryland and Delaware.

Outcomes

• Live in weeks. Flip took the program from kickoff to launch on July 1, 2026, in time for the summer peak season.
• Every event delivered. Flip's fleet answered every event ODEC called in its first summer season, July through September 2026, with 100% participation.
• No DERMS replacement needed. ODEC kept its existing DERMS and gained access to more than a dozen battery brands through a single integration.
• More co-ops joining. The program launched with one member co-op and has since added more, and ODEC publicly announced it to its co-ops' residential members in October 2026.
• A trusted partner. Feedback from ODEC and its co-ops after the first season has been strongly positive, and the relationship is expanding.

Why it matters for other co-ops and utilities

Co-ops and public power utilities may or may not have a DERMS, but they usually run lean teams and serve members on every kind of battery. ODEC shows that Flip can slot into that setup without replacing anything: one integration, every major brand, and a program implemented in weeks.

The model also scales across a G&T's membership. Each new member co-op joins the same platform, so adding the next one is a matter of weeks rather than a new project.