Workforce

JEA Provides Scholarships for Female Student-Athletes Pursuing STEM Degrees

Florida public power utility JEA on Sept. 17 presented scholarships to 10 University of North Florida female student-athletes who are pursuing STEM degrees.
Distributed Energy Resources

Construction is Set to Start on Solar Projects in Two Iowa Public Power Communities

Sandhills Energy is set to begin construction on two solar projects in Iowa – each exceeding 4 megawatts – in Indianola and Waverly, Iowa, both of which are public power communities.
Electricity Markets

PJM and Transmission Owners Conduct Voltage Reduction Action Test

The PJM Interconnection recently tested its ability to temporarily reduce voltage in order to practice and validate an emergency procedure used to ease system conditions under extreme circumstances.
Generation

Hydropower Facility in Ephraim City, Utah, Inducted into Hydropower Project Hall of Fame

The Ephraim Hydropower Facility in the public power community of Ephraim City, Utah, recently was inducted into a hydropower project Hall of Fame.
Workforce

Truckee Donner PUD Honors Board Member Joe Aguera’s 37 Years of Service 

California public power utility Truckee Donner Public Utility District recently named a newly-built water pump station the Joseph “Joe” R. Aguera Pump Station, in recognition of Joe Aguera, a TDPUD board director, 37 years of service.
Electricity Markets

New Actions Tied to AI, Data Centers Unveiled at Recent White House Meeting

The White House on Sept. 12 convened leaders from hyperscalers, artificial intelligence companies, datacenter operators, and utility companies. Participants considered strategies to meet clean energy, permitting, and workforce requirements for developing large-scale AI datacenters and power infrastructure needed for advanced AI operations in the United States,
Disaster Response and Mutual Aid

House Committee Approves APPA-Backed FEMA Bills

The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Sept. 18 approved two Federal Emergency Management Agency bills backed by the American Public Power Association.
Virtual Peaker

September 19, 2024; Louisville, KY—Virtual Peaker, a leading cloud-based grid-edge technology company dedicated to advancing the future of energy and supporting global decarbonization goals, announced today a strategic partnership with FranklinWH Energy Storage Inc. (FranklinWH), a pioneer in home energy management and battery solutions. This collaboration allows utilities to support household consumption intelligently and decrease peak load on the grid.

As the demand for sustainable and resilient energy solutions grows, this integration combines Virtual Peaker’s robust grid-edge distributed energy resource management system (DERMS) software with FranklinWH’s Home Power solutions.

Key benefits of the integration include:
 

  • Enhanced Load Flexibility: Utilities can utilize advanced battery storage capabilities to manage and reduce peak loads more effectively, resulting in significant operational efficiencies and cost savings.
  • Improved Grid Stability: Integrating battery storage with Virtual Peaker’s technology solution ensures a more resilient and reliable energy grid, benefiting all stakeholders.
  • Increased Operational Flexibility for Virtual Power Plants (VPPs): Battery storage enhances the dynamic management and balancing of energy flows within VPPs, enabling them to better adapt to changing grid conditions and market opportunities.
  • Cost Reduction for Consumers: By participating in demand response and Time of Use (TOU) programs, as well as capturing available rebates, consumers who own batteries can lower their overall ownership and energy costs.


"Virtual Peaker is committed to driving innovation in the energy sector, and our partnership with FranklinWH represents another step forward in achieving our vision," said Colin Lamb, VP of Delivery at Virtual Peaker. “By integrating our DERMS with FranklinWH’s leading battery storage technology, we offer utilities a powerful tool to enhance grid reliability and support their sustainability goals."

The integration is currently deployed with two utility customers, and more programs are scheduled for the future.

"Integrating FranklinWH battery storage technology into PGE’s Smart Battery pilot, with the Virtual Peaker platform, will enhance resilience for our customers, as well as benefit the entire grid as we build Oregon’s clean energy future," said Audrey Burkhardt, Manager of Energy Storage and Resilience at Portland General Electric.

“FranklinWH is pleased to partner with Virtual Peaker to deliver value to energy users and the grid. Together, we can leverage our advanced power systems and Virtual Peaker’s dynamic DER management solutions to deliver reliable power and financial incentives to consumers who own batteries while supporting grid modernization," said Vincent Ambrose, Chief Commercial Officer at FranklinWH.

To learn more, visit https://virtual-peaker.com/partners/device-partners/ and https://www.franklinwh.com/.

About Virtual Peaker
Virtual Peaker is a cloud-based distributed energy technology company that empowers utilities to build the grid of the future and meet global decarbonization goals. Through its cutting-edge software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform, the company seamlessly integrates distributed energy resource management system (DERMS) components, customer engagement, and load forecasting. Virtual Peaker's groundbreaking technology, Topline Demand Control, paves the way for the next generation of virtual power plant capabilities. To learn more, please visit virtual-peaker.com or connect on LinkedIn and X via @VirtualPeaker.

About FranklinWH
FranklinWH Energy Storage Inc. is the manufacturer of the Franklin Home Power system. FranklinWH is a research-driven company focused on next-generation residential energy management and storage solutions. Headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, FranklinWH's team has decades of experience in energy systems, from design, through manufacturing, to sales and installation. FranklinWH is AVL-listed with multiple financial institutions. Learn more about how homeowners can achieve energy independence at franklinwh.com.

 

Media Contacts
Amber Mullaney | amullaney@virtual-peaker.com | 502-689-0249
Kathleen Van Gorden | kathleen@doermaker.com | 401-480-1840

Electricity Markets

New GM of Turlock Irrigation District Offers Details on Power Supply Planning

In a recent Q&A with the American Public Power Association, Brad Koehn, the new General Manager of California public power utility Turlock Irrigation District, detailed TID’s plans for adding power supplies in the years ahead.
Reliability

FERC Moves to Improve Reliability by Closing Supply Chain Cyber Risk Management Gaps

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Sept. 19 proposed to require new or modified critical infrastructure standards “to address the growing risks posed by malicious actors seeking to compromise the reliable operation of the bulk-power system,” it said.