EDF Renewables acquires PowerFlex Systems
EDF Renewables North America has acquired PowerFlex Systems, a start-up with a patented technology called Adaptive Charging Network (ACN). It is used in V2H charging systems powered by renewable energy in particular.
Based in California, PowerFlex specialises in charging management and takes into account an entire site’s demand. Buildings with solar panels, for example, benefit. EDF states the acquisition enables them “to provide building owners and facility managers with a single energy ecosystem where all assets work in concert to deliver clean, reliable, and affordable carbon-free power when and where it is needed,” said Raphael Declercq, executive vice president distributed solutions and strategy at EDF Renewables.
Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. However, PowerFlex launched from the Netlab incubator at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena and has received grants from powerful parties including the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy’s ARPA-E program, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the California Energy Commission’s CalSeed program and utility Southern California Edison.
PowerFlex’s pitches its ability to integrate charging cycles with the electrical operations of the buildings they are connected to, as well as the grids that serve them power. While smart charging is not uncommon, PowerFlex claims its Adaptive Charging Network also taps into lighting, heating, ventilation and air conditioning, as well as solar panels, batteries and other distributed energy technologies of buildings and adapts loads accordingly.
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