Powin partners with SMA America for 2 GW supply agreement

Powin Energy, a lithium-ion battery manufacturer, and SMA America, the U.S. business of SMA Solar Technology, signed a multi-year agreement for the supply of power components in 2 GW of power capacity energy storage systems.

Under the agreement, Powin will install battery systems over the next few years with SMA’s power inverters and other solutions. Tualatin, Oregon-based Powin secured a predictable power device supply for up to three years which will provide project planning stability and certainty.

“Our commitment to the U.S. market and to our customers is further strengthened by our partnership with SMA, one of the world’s best manufacturers of inverters,” said Anthony Carroll, president of Powin Energy. “The energy storage market is entering a new stage of transformative growth and SMA will help us meet the growing demand and provide our customers with more flexibility in choosing their preferred power conversion technology.”

In September, Powin acquired EKS Energy, a power electronics and energy management solutions provider. The acquisition expands Powin’s offerings to include power conversion and power plant controllers, allowing the company to offer a full suite of AC energy storage systems that support microgrids among other systems. Other new products tied to the acquisition include PV inverters, DC-to-DC converters and multi-port inverters used for utility-scale solar plus energy storage projects.

In February, Powin signed a supply agreement with Borrego for 800MWh of Powin’s Stack750 storage solution. Under the agreement Borrego will install Powin’s battery energy storage systems for both utility-scale, standalone storage projects and hybrid solar-plus-storage projects across the U.S., with more than 490 MWh of projects in the pipeline.

The bulk of Powin’s global supply pipeline came in February, when it signed supply deals covering a 5.8GWh pipeline of energy storage projects in the US and Taiwan. Of those 5.8GWh, the company said the majority will use Powin’s Centipede product.

Powin’s Centipede consists of pre-integrated modular units containing batteries, thermal management equipment, and other safety features. The Centipede requires half the time to procure and deploy – and uses 30% less space – than rival modular storage systems, while also reducing lifecycle costs.

Powin has delivered over 2.5 GWh of battery systems in more than eight countries and has a contracted pipeline of more than 10 GWh of systems globally over the next three years. The company is backed by GIC, Trilantic North America, Energy Impact Partners and Samsung Ventures.