Energy storage at RE+ 2024: SMA, Briggs & Stratton, Eaton, TeraHive

The energy storage market is booming in part because of falling prices, but also driven by changing net metering policies as well as a need for resiliency. Wood Mackenzie forecasts that 13 GW of distributed storage will be deployed over the next five years. The residential segment will constitute 79% of distributed power capacity installations, said the report. Walking around the show floor at RE+ 2024, energy storage solutions are as abundant as they are varied.

SMA America solutions for residential, commercial and large-scale

With a theme of “Managing Energy to Save Yours,” SMA Americas is showing the new SMA Home Storage system, a modular, customizable battery for residential installations. The SPAN Smart Panel is integrated into the SMA Home Energy Solution, together providing energy management for whole-home backup. This product is slated for release in 2025.

Other SMA products include the Sunny Boy Smart Energy inverter that offers a hybrid solution that enables both immediate energy use and storage in one single device.

For the C&I market, SMA America has the Sunny Tripower CORE1 and Sunny Tripower X inverter. Attendees can also get an advanced look at the SMA Commercial Storage solution along with the Sunny Tripower Storage X. Also on display are digital resources such as the Energy App, 360° app, ennexOS Sunny Portal, and Sunny Design for detailed views of energy management, design and control.

For the large-scale business segment, SMA is showcasing the Sunny Tripower PEAK3 and the new modular power conversion solution, Sunny Central FLEX.

SMA America is exhibiting in booth #1 in the outdoor Grand Plaza.

Briggs & Stratton and Sol-Ark launch battery backup power packages

By pairing SimpliPHI 6.6 stackable batteries and Sol-Ark inverters, the two companies are offering backup system packages that include an EnergyTrak gateway and monitoring apps.

The packages can be sized with up to three SimpliPHI 6.6 batteries depending on how much of the home the user wants to power during an outage. Systems can also be scaled as customer needs change.

The manufacturers estimate that for an average residence, a one-battery system with a Sol-Ark 8K inverter will deliver 10.8 hours at 50% backup load. The battery system can be scaled up to 18 batteries for extremely high home needs, delivering 119.7 kWh with maximum continuous power of 84 kW or 90 hours of power at 100% load, the companies say.

Find Briggs & Stratton in booth 52025; Sol-Ark in 58027.

Eaton introduces smart breakers and home energy management system 

Intelligent power management company Eaton announced the AbleEdge home energy management system that is designed to work with any residential energy storage and solar system in North America through open application programming interface (APIs) and multiple communication options for its microgrid interconnect device.

The system is powered by Eaton’s smart breakers, microgrid interconnect device and smart panels, enabling home load management, utility demand response programs and virtual power plants, the company reports.

Eaton is demonstrating its new solutions at RE+ in booth D32011.

TeraHive smart energy solutions

TeraHive has entered the U.S. market and is launching three smart energy solutions: the Energy Suite, Charging Station Management Solution and Enterprise Energy Management. These solutions are powered by  an AI software platform that uses machine learning, forecasting, optimization and real-time control algorithms to optimize energy consumption and infrastructure management.

New products include:

Energy Suite for residential energy management that provides whole-home backup. Using AI Prediction and Smart Mode, the company says the suite analyzes and learns users’ energy habits and preferences to determine the most efficient and cost-effective use for home energy storage systems. Available Q4 2024.

Charging Station Management Solution, which is an open, API-based software solution that allows companies to monitor and manage their charging network remotely and efficiently. It includes a dynamic load management (DLM) feature that ensures available power is evenly distributed to all EVs being charged, minimizing the impact on the electricity infrastructure for larger installations. Available Q4 2024.

Enterprise Energy Management offers energy management with intelligent forecasting, demand response and anomaly detection for commercial applications like data centers, retail and logistics hubs.

See TeraHive’s intelligent energy management solutions at booth L31003.