Microgrid Flex Team Gains Momentum with Addition of Pisgah Energy

June 18, 2025

Schneider Electric first announced its Microgrid Flex plan in 2023 centered around the concept that a standardized, modular approach to microgrid development can overcome long interconnection delays and bring both construction and operational costs down somewhat.

Rod Walton, Microgrid Knowledge Managing Editor

Aerial view of the Domaine Carneros Winery and microgrid project in California. Image credit Schneider Electric

Schneider Electric’s move to standardize and streamline microgrid adoption industry-wide has gained another partner with boots on the ground of solar project development.

North Carolina-based commercial solar and energy storage contractor Pisgah Energy has joined the partnership centered around Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Microgrid Flex solution. The focus of the Flex program is to cut down on long interconnection queues and facilitate quicker development of microgrid projects across the U.S.

"This partnership marks a significant milestone in our mission to revolutionize the renewable energy landscape,” Evan Becka, president and senior project developer for Pisgah Energy, said in a statement. “As a microgrid development partner, we’re excited to offer our clients a streamlined solution that allows them to achieve energy independence while saving money.

"What’s more, Schneider Electric is a trusted and well-established company; the stability they bring to the market will provide our clients with peace of mind as well," Becka added.

The Flex teaming of Schneider Electric, one of the world’s biggest microgrid developers, and Pisgah Energy will combine expertise on new projects integrating solar power, energy storage and intelligent energy management systems. Pisgah Energy’s team has combined for more than 50 years of experience in the solar industry, including in the construction phase.

Aerial of the rooftop solar at the Buncombe County Health and Human Services Building. Image credit Pisgah Energy

"We are thrilled to partner with Pisgah Energy to bring innovative and sustainable microgrid solutions to the market,” said Samantha Childress, Microgrid Partner & Strategy Director at Schneider Electric. “This collaboration aligns with our commitment to driving energy efficiency and resilience, ensuring a sustainable future for all."

One month ago, New York-based developer Sprocket Power joined as the inaugural partner of the Microgrid Flex program. Sprocket Power has led several higher-profile commercial microgrids lately, including distributed energy solutions at five automobile dealerships in New York. It has developed specific capabilities in on-site power development for EV charging infrastructure.

Schneider Electric is a long-time integrator of microgrids totaling more than 350 microgrids generating about 100 GW of capacity throughout the U.S. One of the more recent and unique microgrids completed by Schneider and partners was the solar and storage project powering the popular Domaine Carneros specialty winery in California’s Napa Valley.

The Domaine Carneros microgrid (pictured at top) is not officially a Flex partnership achievement, but it was Schneider Electric’s first deployment of the Flex-like combinations of resources and modularized components.

Pisgah Energy has developed and completed numerous solar projects for commercial and industrial energy customers in recent years. Those on-site rooftop solar arrays include the CMI Plastics facility in Ayden, North Carolina, as well as Buncombe Community College’s parking deck, the Buncombe County Health and Human Services building (pictured within this story) and the Vanguard Furniture Frame manufacturing plant also in North Carolina.

Schneider Electric also unveiled its own battery storage system and announced an earlier collaboration with linear generator maker Mainspring Energy last year to streamline other projects.

About the Author

Rod Walton, Microgrid Knowledge Managing Editor | Managing Editor

For Microgrid Knowledge editorial inquiries, please contact Managing Editor Rod Walton at [email protected].

I’ve spent the last 15 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist. I was an energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World before moving to business-to-business media at PennWell Publishing, which later became Clarion Events, where I covered the electric power industry. I joined Endeavor Business Media in November 2021 to help launch EnergyTech, one of the company’s newest media brands. I joined Microgrid Knowledge in July 2023.

I earned my Bachelors degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma. My career stops include the Moore American, Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, Wagoner Tribune and Tulsa World, all in Oklahoma . I have been married to Laura for the past 33-plus years and we have four children and one adorable granddaughter. We want the energy transition to make their lives better in the future.

Microgrid Knowledge and EnergyTech are focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids. The C&I sectors together account for close to 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.

Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.