Virtual Peaker said it received a $16.6 million investment to expand beyond its distributed energy resource systems (DERMS) platform. The funding was led by Louis Bacon’s Moore Strategic Ventures (MSV), with participation from Emerson Ventures.
DERMS helps utilities manage their distributed energy resources (DER), including rooftop solar, wind, residential battery storage, and electric vehicles (EVs), which according to Guidehouse could account for double the energy capacity additions compared to capacity additions from centralized power generation by 2030
And of course as DER become more prolific, utilities must effectively manage them. Virtual Peaker is expanding its platform to include Customer Engagement and Forecasting suites of products in addition to its DERMS suite.
The company’s DERMS platform includes programs that help increase customer interest in DER and helps with enrolling customers, keeping the customers engaged, paying incentives, and knowing when to schedule events, according to Virtual Peaker.
“Efficiently managing electricity demand is an essential component of a grid capable of meeting the world’s goal of electrification and decarbonization,” said James McIntyre, Senior Managing Director and COO of Moore Strategic Ventures.
Emerson, a key stakeholder in the electric utility space, also participated in the funding round through Emerson Ventures, its corporate venture capital initiative. Thurston Cromwell, Head of Emerson Ventures, said in a press release that the Virtual Peaker technology complements Emerson’s business.
Virtual Peaker currently employs about 40 people in various locations across the country and has plans to expand across product development, marketing, sales, among other functions.
