This data-file profiles microgrid companies, which specialize in the engineering, procurement, installation and operation of microgrids. These companies help to provide reliable power; either in locations that are not served by the T&D network, or with the capability of “islanding” from the main grid amidst grid disruptions.
The US DoE maintains a database of 1,200 past microgrid projects. It is not exhaustive. But it shows who has deployed microgrids, for what applications, and with what generation sources (or combinations of generation sources).
In this data-file, we have identified underlying microgrid companies, which engineered, procured or manufactured and installed the hardware behind microgrids, and featured in the US DoE database.
Many larger organizations have performed this work themselves, using in-house engineering. But microgrids are complex and bespoke, which creates an opportunity for specialized microgrid companies.
One notable comment, from a PE-owned microgrid company, on the recipe for success in this space is that “We had to transform from being a project company with a cool platform to being a platform company with really cool projects”.
The largest companies in our data-file have deployed over 1GW of microgrid capacity, and tend to have focused on different sources of gas generation, especially reciprocating engines (e.g., VoltaGrid).
Larger microgrids are also being deployed to provide rapid and reliable power to AI data-centers.
We also see many of these microgrid companies integrating, and directly manufacturing components for use in their systems. Some of these components are patented. Others have signed framework agreements with gas-generation OEMs, as their supplier of choice (details in the data-file).
Microgrid energy as a service is another model that has been gaining traction. The microgrid companies design, install, and operate the system and recover the capital costs through a fixed sales agreement with the microgrid’s customers.
There are also companies specializing in solar+battery microgrids, but they have tended to be smaller, and also require integrating combustion-based generators for round-the-clock reliability.
Full details on these microgrid companies, our favorite case studies, and some statistics from interrogating the DoE microgrid database are available in the data-file.