Product roundup: Enphase, Panasonic, Con Edison, startups, and more

This year kicked off with a slew of new clean energy products, and over the past week, the announcements kept on coming. To stay up to date on what’s new, check out this latest product roundup:

ConnectDER meter device

New York City-based utility Con Edison is offering, free of charge, a device that can save upwards of $1,000 for a residential customer installing a new solar array. The Smart ConnectDER, built by project partner ConnectDER, allows the customer to avoid the cost of upgrading the circuit breaker panel. It also eliminates the need for excessive electrical boxes on the side of the home.

The Smart ConnectDER is an adapter that uses the electric meter socket as a point of interconnection for solar power. It fits on most electric meters and works for solar arrays up to 15 kW. Con Edison provided 300 Smart ConnectDERs to customers during a 2019 pilot program and has received state funding to provide an additional 2,400 units. The utility said it plans to continue the program even after reaching that target. More info available here.

Separately, Virginia-based ConnectDER announced it received a U.S. patent for “innovations” to its products. More info available here.

e-Zinc raises cash to commercialize energy storage tech

e-Zinc, a Toronto-based startup, raised C$2.3 million ($1.8 million) in a closed round led by BDC Capital’s Cleantech Practice to help accelerate commercialization of the tech company’s long-duration energy storage solution.

According to e-Zinc, it developed a grid-scale solution that stores energy in physically free zinc metal, scales energy capacity at a fraction of the cost of lithium-ion batteries, and enables economical energy delivery over a period of multiple days. This latest financing adds to other equity rounds and government grants. The company plans to launch a pilot project in Ontario in May and has set its sights on entering the U.S. market. More info available here.

Panasonic expands products and installer program

Panasonic Corp. of North America recently promoted 13 installers across the U.S. to the Elite and Premium tiers of its Residential Solar Installer Program. Installers and homeowners will not only gain access to the Panasonic Solar Modules portfolio, but also receive access to the new high-efficiency Panasonic Solar EverVolt Modules, available beginning in February.

Homeowners in Arizona, Texas, Florida, Iowa, and Indiana will be able to access Panasonic’s solar products from seven Elite Level installers, who will be the first in Panasonic’s network to gain access to new products and rebates. Six additional installers in Florida, Texas, and New Mexico will also offer homeowners Panasonic’s benefits as new Premium Level installers. More info available here.

Enphase solar+storage product compatibility

California-based Enphase Energy said that its Enphase Storage systems are now compatible with Enphase M215 and M250 microinverter-based solar systems. According to the company, the expanded compatibility provides approximately 300,000 additional Enphase system owners with the possibility of achieving grid-agnostic energy resilience through the Enphase Upgrade Program.

Similarly, this new combo of solar and storage products, as well as previous compatibility with IQ 6 and IQ 7 microinverter-based systems, now allows U.S. installers to approach and offer storage upgrades to nearly the vast majority of Enphase homeowners nationwide. More info available here.

NeoVolta spreads storage distribution network

NeoVolta, a San Diego-based manufacturer of residential energy storage systems, has expanded its distribution network into Utah, adding to California, Nevada, and Arizona. Under a three-year agreement, PMP Energy is able to secure specific geographic exclusivities for distribution, in exchange for making minimum purchases of up to $15 million.

According to NeoVolta, its NV14 product features a storage capacity of 14.4 kWh and 7.7 kW of continuous power discharge. That capacity can be scaled up to 24 kWh with the optional NV24 add-on battery, without the expense of an additional inverter. NeoVolta systems are engineered with lithium iron phosphate chemistry. More info available here.

Rhombus nets certifications for EV remote charging dispenser

Rhombus Energy Solutions has landed certification by Underwriters Laboratory (UL) and the Consumer Electronics Testing and Certification Services Group (CSA) for its RES-D2-CS20 electric vehicle (EV) charging dispenser. The product is compatible with Rhombus’s UL-certified 60 kW and 125 kW power conditioning systems (PCS) for high-power EV charging of medium- and heavy-duty fleets.

Combined with the UL 1741-SA certification of Rhombus’ AC to DC PCS units, these certifications allow Rhombus solutions to be used in both unidirectional and bi-directional vehicle-to-grid applications, meaning fleet operators could use their EVs as a source of energy storage. More info available here.