# The case for using prices rather than VPPs to coordinate distributed energy

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/volts-3501275/the-case-for-using-prices-rather-than-vpps-to-coordinate-distributed-energy
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/volts-3501275/the-case-for-using-prices-rather-than-vpps-to-coordinate-distributed-energy.md
Podcast: [Volts](https://stenobird.com/podcast/volts-3501275)
Published: 2026-05-08T16:02:00+00:00
Episode link: https://www.volts.wtf/p/the-case-for-using-prices-rather
Audio file: https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/186481235/83171891a6c5b6d5035063ca5f5f1cea.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/volts-3501275/episodes/the-case-for-using-prices-rather-than-vpps-to-coordinate-distributed-energy
Duration seconds: 5412

## Resource

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe Most people think that coordinating the behavior of thousands of distributed energy resources requires some kind of third-party middleman, like an aggregator managing a VPP. My guest today, veteran research scientist Bruce Nordman, believes there’s a better way: dynamic, time- and location-specific retail prices, communicated directly to consumer devices, which would cut out the middleman and leave more value with customers.

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/volts-3501275/episodes/the-case-for-using-prices-rather-than-vpps-to-coordinate-distributed-energy/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/volts-3501275/the-case-for-using-prices-rather-than-vpps-to-coordinate-distributed-energy.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.