Generac Now Manufacturing & Offering Smart Grid Ready Generators & Battery Storage Systems
Generac Power Systems says its customers can now sell power back to the grid to offset some of their energy costs, thanks to the manufacturer’s new Smart Grid Ready feature built into its standby generators, commercial and industrial generators, and PWRcell Solar + Battery Storage systems. The company’s Enbala Concerto platform, a real-time energy-balancing solution, lets users create controllable and dispatchable energy resources from flexible loads, energy storage, and renewable energy sources. Generac says owners of existing PWRcell and home standby generators can use Enbala Concerto following a firmware update.
Return On Investment
Generac President and CEO Aaron Jagdfeld says Smart Grid Ready integration lets residential, commercial, and solar customers make significant contributions toward making the grid more reliable, resilient, and sustainable.
“Climate change and an aging electrical grid are making power outages and power shortages more frequent and longer lasting,” Jagdfeld says. “With Smart Grid Ready, consumers can play a key role in being part of the solution. In addition to the peace of mind that they’re receiving from Generac products, customers have the opportunity to obtain additional return on investment by leveraging their Generac units to contribute energy to the grid, support grid stability, and receive payment for their excess power.”
“A Win-Win For All”
Generac says that with the new platform, specially designated Smart Grid Ready products are transformed into distributed energy resources (DERs). Collections of DERs known as virtual power plants (VPPs) can then supplement grid services provided by traditional power generation. DERs continue to operate as traditional power backup devices, providing power during a power outage, but also allow for selling power back to the grid during peak demand periods.
“We’ve taken segmented energy assets that would normally be complicated to connect and brought them together in a seamless fashion,” says Russ Minick, president and CMO of Generac’s energy technology business group. “Otherwise dormant backup power can now easily and quickly come online, creating a win-win for all—utilities achieve a cleaner grid with improved reliability and reduced cost-to-serve, while end customers receive direct financial incentives and a more stable grid for participating in VPPs.”
Find Your Generac Power Equipment
You’ll find a big selection of new and used Generac power system products for sale every day on PowerSystemsToday.com, including towable, stationary, and portable generators.
Source: Generac