Scale Microgrid Solutions, a New Jersey-based microgrid company that focuses on commercial and industrial (C&I) customers, today announced that it has secured an equity commitment of up to $300 million from global private equity firm Warburg Pincus.
The four-year-old company says that the investment will help it accelerate growth, with particular attention this year on what it calls its Rapid Response Modular Microgrid (R2M2), a technology designed with an eye toward California businesses dealing with the growing threat of wildfires and public safety power shutoffs.
California has become an epicenter of microgrid development because of last year’s power shutoffs that left millions in the dark, some for days in October and November. Utilities turned off power to prevent wildfires believed to be caused by electric wire sparks. PG&E, the state’s largest utility, has warned that it may have to impose the shutoffs for the next ten years as it installs upgrades to make its system safer during wildfire threats.
Microgrid development is also on the rise in California because of its ambitious sustainability goals. A bill signed into law in 2018 requires that 100% of the state’s electricity comes from carbon free sources by 2045.
Ryan Goodman, CEO, Scale Microgrid Solutions, said that his company is well positioned to capitalize on microgrid and distributed energy growth in California and other parts of the US because it offers fully financed systems.
“North America needs to rebuild its energy infrastructure in a far more sustainable way, which requires flexible and reliable behind-the-meter power solutions and access to efficient financing for customers,” Goodman said. “This is particularly timely in regions like California and the Pacific Northwest, but is also relevant in the Northeast, as C&I customers demand more reliable, cheaper and cleaner energy solutions.”
Peter Kagan, managing director, Warburg Pincus, said that Scale Microgrid Solutions “represents an important investment in the next wave of power infrastructure.”
Scale Microgrid partnered with Schneider Electric on the Bowery Farming microgrid in New Jersey as its first new build. The project uses solar, energy storage and natural gas.
Meet partners and prospects at Microgrid 2020: Distributed Energy and World Electrification, hosted by Microgrid Knowledge June 2-3 in Philadelphia, Pa.
