New Jersey is moving toward a program that would pay residents and businesses to help ease strain on the electric grid, with JCP&L among the four utilities ordered to take part.

The Board of Public Utilities on Thursday took the first step toward creating PowerUp NJ, an opt-in “virtual power plant” program. Instead of building one physical power plant, the program would coordinate customer-owned devices to briefly shift or reduce electricity use when demand is highest.

Smart thermostats, home batteries, electric-vehicle chargers and smart water heaters could be included. A battery might discharge stored power, for example, or an EV charger might pause until later in the evening.

This is a program in development, not an announcement that customers can start collecting payments now. The BPU order requires JCP&L, Atlantic City Electric, PSE&G and Rockland Electric to implement interim programs by October 1, 2027. Those programs will run for two years.

Customers who choose to enroll would be compensated for participating. The BPU says participants will be able to choose which devices and events to include. Some changes, such as a thermostat being raised a few degrees, could be noticeable; others are intended to happen in the background.

Businesses could also be paid to reduce electricity use during peak periods.

The agency says reducing peak demand could lower the need for conventional generation and additional grid investments. Its staff’s preliminary analysis estimates that a 3% reduction in peak demand could avoid roughly $60 million a year in system capacity costs.

That figure is a statewide estimate tied to a possible reduction in demand, not guaranteed savings or a payment amount for individual households. The announcement does not specify how much an individual customer would earn.

The interim programs will build on technologies and demand-response programs the utilities already operate, while collecting measured results to help shape a longer-term statewide program.