Four local startups are offering ways to help utilities cope with a surge in electric vehicles and new electric appliances being added to the grid
A group of San Francisco startups could play key roles in helping keep the lights on amid the rush to electrify vehicles, homes and commercial buildings.
Estimates of just how much demand will increase vary widely. But the U.S. Energy Information Administration, a division of the Department of Energy, projects nationwide demand will grow by 1% a year from 2022 to 2050; at that rate, electricity demand would grow by 32% over that time period. Voltus’ utility and other customers pay it to provide power or reduce demand. The company then shares that money — or shares in the cost savings from reduced energy use — with DER operators.
WeaveGrid’s software helps power companies manage customers’ EV charging so they don’t have numerous vehicles charging at once and overtaxing their grids. At the same time, it helps car owners ensure that they’re charging their vehicles when rates are low and clean energy is plentiful — while also making sure their cars are fully charged when they need them.
The electricity demand coming from EVs is “going to become really painful,” he said. “We’re seeing clients go through that pain already.” Span also works with utilities, but it’s focused on the power demand inside individual homes and buildings, rather than across the grid. The 200-plus-person startup has developed a “smart” electrical panel that can throttle down the power going to particular uses during times of peak demand.
The current infrastructure inside most homes doesn’t support the move toward greater electrification, he said. Bidirectional, which has raised about $2 million in venture funding, plans to offer an app that will notify car owners when the grid needs energy and plans to share with them the money the utilities will pay for that power. The startup estimates customers will make around $750 a year from sending power back to the grid from their cars.
Weavegrid Span.Io Bidirectional Energy Ev Electric Vehicles Electrification Climate Change Global Warming Green Technology
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