Swell Energy, a provider of energy management and smart grid solutions, announced that it has secured $120 million to fund the growth of its virtual power plant program
(VPP) to 600 MWh in order to tackle rising energy costs, power outages, and system pollution.
Deployed at homes and businesses across the United States, Swell's VPPs connect utilities, customers, and third-party service providers, aggregate and co-optimize distributed energy resources through the company's GridAmp software platform, and provide a cohesive network of solar-powered batteries supporting overall grid reliability and stability while potentially lowering grid operating costs.
The program assists utilities in delivering greener energy to their consumers and reducing their reliance on fossil fuel peaker plants. It also enables families and businesses to pay less for solar energy generation and storage and maintain electricity during outages.
Suleman Khan, chief executive officer of Swell Energy, stated:
"Utilities and investors have realized the significance of virtual power plants for some time; this funding indicates that the capital markets view this new asset class as having significant value. Virtual power plants are the key to a large-scale clean energy future."
SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and Greenbacker Development Opportunities Fund I led the funding round, with Ares Infrastructure Opportunities fund and Ontario Power Generation Pension Fund also participating.
Director of SoftBank Group, Ben Parton, said:
"By coordinating distributed energy resources across the grid to intelligently meet changing demand, Swell's AI- and machine-learning-powered platform helps solve a major problem of the energy transition while also lowering customers' utility costs. We're excited to help Swell's team advance the use of clean energy."
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