Optimizers & Inverters

While the Super Bowl victory parade rolled by, solar energy professionals shook hands, shared stories, made deals and visited more than 80 industry exhibitions on the floor in Boston, Massachusetts.

SolarEdge has recently purchased an Italian EV system manufacturer, a South Korean battery maker, an Israeli UPS producer, internally developed a virtual power plant grid service, and now they’re working with Google to integrate energy management tools into Google Assistant.

An analysis of a First Solar power plant in Tampa, Florida suggests that by operating solar plants with more flexibility operators can save money for ratepayers – while also allowing for significantly higher penetration levels of renewables.

FEMA’s recommendations for solar system hurricane preparedness focused on structural engineering, installation competence, plus simply tightening the bolts regularly, along with microinverters to mitigate individual panel damage.

The program allows eligible owners of older Enphase microinverter lines a series of options to upgrade to the company’s newest seventh-generation microinverters.

Enphase’s 3rd quarter results saw revenues at $78 million with an estimated $10 million sales shortfall due to a component shortage, as the company shipped 204 MW of inverters. Future speculation saw an international play on the IQ8, the SunPower partnership, and energy storage driving growth.

In a slow global solar market, SolarEdge grew total shipments 44% year-over-year, expanded its presence in the C&I market, and grew global sales. Margins did slip, and growth rates were slower.

The German inverter maker has joined forces with the Chinese battery maker after losing U.S. market share to SolarEdge. This follows BYD linking up with Kostal to optimize communication interfaces between inverters and storage applications.

The power electronics maker will buy 75% of Kokam’s shares for $88 million, with an intent to acquire the remainder thereafter. Strategic company acquisitions and close partnerships are characterizing this year’s inverter market, as companies seek to diversify and integrate storage systems and other technologies.

As the module level rapid shutdown requirements for rooftop solar come into play for 2019, multiple inverter manufacturers are moving forward with solutions.