Silver Spring Networks Inc. is now integrating solar inverters with its Smart Energy Platform.
As part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE‘s) SunShot Initiative, Silver Spring’s standards-based networking platform and CustomerIQ consumer engagement solution with photovoltaic (PV) enhancements have been selected by the University of Hawaii at Manoa’s Hawaii Natural Energy Institute (UH-HNEI) for solar integration projects in Hawaii, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia.
Silver Spring’s IPv6-based networking platform around standards such as Smart Energy Profile 2.0 and SunSpec was a criterion for selection.
The state of Hawaii is already a leader in the production of solar energy. In collaboration with the Maui Electric Co. and Hawaiian Electric Co. (HECO), the UH-HNEI project is designed to enable utilities to better manage and integrate photovoltaic systems through inverter control to allow for higher penetrations of solar energy on the grid.
New enhancements to the Silver Spring CustomerIQ consumer engagement platform help analyze and present the data so customers better understand the net billing impact of installing solar in their homes, and helps guide economical energy usage throughout the day.
Oklahoma Gas & Electric is also leveraging its inverter lab to conduct testing of the advanced inverters and providing a utility benefit evaluation of smart PV inverters. Pepco Holdings’ subsidiaries, Atlantic City Electric in New Jersey and Pepco in the District of Columbia, will host field trials of the smart inverter technologies to examine utility control of distributed solar inverters to both integrate higher penetration of solar as well as protect critical electric network infrastructure.
Additional partners in these solar integration projects include Fronius, a manufacturer of photovoltaic inverters, and Rising Sun Solar Electric and SolarCity for installation and management of the solar power systems.
