“By 2030, 95% of the new total investment in global electricity capacity will be renewable energy. Long-term storage is a key enabler of energy transitions that provide both economical and sustainable solutions.”
John G. Jung is the President of Energy Vault Solutions
There was electricity in the air at ISNA 2022 – the first inaugural combined conference by ISNAESNA22 Intersolar North America (ISNA) and Energy Storage North America (ESNA). Advancing clean energy technology by delivering the most comprehensive solar insurance support is Solar Insure’s mission, and we had a chance to help others grow their businesses by offering management tools at the show. Here are some of the most valuable takeaways, announcements, and highlights as we reflect back.
1. Solar Insure announces partnership with Heliene
Solar Insure has officially partnered with Heliene and will now offer coverage for their high-quality, competitively-priced suite of modules manufactured in North America. Heliene currently has a 15 year part warranty and has partnered with Solar Insure to provide a 30-year parts and labor warranty. Maintaining a commitment to repair the world, Heliene recently announced the expansion of a new 550 MW production capacity manufacturing plant in Mountain Iron, Minnesota, continuing their delivery of just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing at competitive prices. As a sponsor of the 2022 Solar Games, Heliene’s residential heterojunction modules were put to the test in various rounds of competition. Heliene brings innovative solutions to customers, backed by the Solar Insure guarantee that puts customers’ minds at ease.
2. Solar Insure announces partnership with Generac
Recently ranked one of the highest-trusted companies in the U.S., Generac now joins the Solar Insure list of approved vendors. Generac’s iconic new PWRcell solar kits with hybrid inverters are helping customers confidently expand the adoption of renewable energy. Generac has a 10-year parts warranty on their PWRcell inverter and has partnered with Solar Insure to deliver a 30-year parts and labor warranty. The new partnership supports the expansion of microgrids by providing Generac customers and installers the top risk management insurance in the market.
3. Keynote from Surya Panditi
Keynote speaker Surya Panditi, CEO of Enel X North America, used the 2020 California wildfires as a backdrop to his talk “Resilience of the Grid in the Face of Extreme Weather,” where he discussed the need for flexible and resilient distributed energy solutions in times of emergency. He spoke to the imperative measures necessary for grid resilience and decarbonization, including policy, tech, and financial incentives.
Panditi’s keynote presentation spoke to the urgent need to modernize our power grid. To ensure continuous access to electricity for consumers and businesses in times of disaster requires the rapid development of diverse solutions for microgrids, storage, and EV tech.
4. PV Reusable Pallets
PV Pallets launched this year and showcased their adjustable, reusable, returnable, and recyclable pallets. Solar site installation waste is a topic that will be garnering more attention, and pallets are a big part of that everyday solar waste.
For example, large-scale facilities like Florida Power & Light (FPL) 74.5 MW Cotton Creek Solar Energy Center has an estimated 200,000 panels installed and required about 9,900 wood pallets and cardboard boxes to deliver the solar panels. To save millions on disposal, FPL leveraged onsite chippers for turning those pallets into mulch. PV Pallets aims to do away with the one-and-done model of panel delivery by offering customers reuse and return options for panel delivery.
5. Omni Rooftop Systems
Omni Rooftop Systems showcased their new snow retention solution, an avalanche prevention mechanism for rooftop solar projects. They also displayed their pest protection and lightning guards – all solutions to help eliminate steps on pest protection, snow retention, and lightning guard projects.
6. Solar CarPort System
The Solar CarPorT System by Kern Solar Structures was displayed at the show. The CarPorT system offers bespoke manufacturing, customized to fit any shape and space. The system offers options for EV charging, storage, and column integration with inverters.
7. SunModo’s TopTile Mount
Currently, roof tile mounts are installed through or underneath roof tile, often removing or replacing an entire tile. At the show, SunModo demonstrated a new method for installing roof hooks on tile, a tripod mount that is drilled through the center of each tile going through to the decking with a water-tight seal application to finish off the mount.
8. Lithium ferro-phosphate batteries LiFePO4
Lithium iron or “ferro-phosphate” or plain LiFePO4 batteries are coming in strong to compete with Lithium-ion batteries due to their durability, stability, safety, and ability to support punctuated energy surges, as demonstrated in a MIT study. At the show, Discover Battery launched the Helios energy storage system using a Lithium Ferro Battery to demonstrate how to storage system operates.
9. Carla Petermen on Utility Leadership
“Our integrated resource plan in California calls for over 13,500 megawatts of storage in 2023 and utility-scale solar growing to over 17,500 megawatts by 2032, announced
Carla Peterman, Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs, and Chief Sustainability Officer for Pacific Gas and Electric Company. The keynote speaker addressed the topic of utility leadership in renewable energy and the importance of solar energy storage as part of the key defense against the damages of wildfires.
10. 2022 Solar Games
Saving one of the best events for last, the #2022SolarGames allowed solar installation teams to showcase their best work in live-action. The six-team matchup over two days gave the crowd a 75-90 minute round of installation action. Ultimately, the Sol-Up team nailed their round with no details or connections missed. Go Sol-Up!
Between matches of the Solar Games, SunCast’s Nico Johnson and Bodhi Solar’s Scott Nguyen hosted a solar version of the popular NPR show “Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me” quiz show.
ISNA 2022 was a welcomed opportunity to rejoin our partners and colleagues in person. The companies that showed up and showcased were all ready to grow solar. We look forward to ISNA 2023 and delivering our risk management solutions to your business.
About Solar Insure
Solar Insure is a California-owned independent insurance brokerage dedicated to providing our clients with the highest quality professional risk management & insurance services while delivering competitively priced alternative energy insurance products.
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If you are interested in learning more about solar panel warranty programs and how they can help you and your clients out, please feel free to reach out.
You can reach us at 714-625-8204 (M-F 9am-5pm PST) or you can contact us here.
Resources
ACS Nano 2012, 6, 3, 2215–2225. Publication Date: February 3, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1021/nn204177u Copyright © 2012 American Chemical Society
