Maplewell and Urban Electric Power Form Strategic Partnership to Develop Virtual Power Plants
Maplewell Energy, a virtual power plant developer that optimizes behind-the-meter energy resources to create savings, add revenue, and offer grid services, and Urban Electric Power, a manufacturer of safe, rechargeable zinc batteries, announced a new strategic partnership.
Maplewell is developing virtual power plants throughout North America for commercial and industrial customers through a model known as Energy-as-a-Service. Maplewell’s cutting-edge energy management system (EMS), JANiiT, is unlocking demand flexibility at the grid edge for commercial, industrial, and government enterprises.
The new partnership will enable Maplewell and Urban Electric Power to provide commercial and industrial customers a turnkey battery energy storage system combined with the JANiiT platform. The solution will deliver demand charge management, demand response, and other grid services with load shifting, shedding, and modulation.
JANiiT provides real-time demand charge management and demand response for commercial and industrial buildings up to 250,000 square feet, providing customers demand response revenue and demand charge savings. JANiiT goes beyond a traditional building management or automation system to integrate forecasting, predictive control, and real-time, feedback-based optimization that is proactive instead of reactive.
Urban Electric Power has given new life to the century-old technology of zinc manganese-dioxide battery cells — the chemistry of familiar household AA alkaline batteries — through patented chemistry enhancements which make UEP batteries rechargeable for 10 years or more. That’s 50 times longer than when Ford Motors first tried recharging alkalines.
Urban Electric Power’s advanced battery technology offers several advantages. Unlike lithium batteries, the zinc alkaline batteries are certified by UL standards to pose no risk of thermal runaway, making them fire-safe for indoor installations. They contain no cobalt, whose mining in Africa carries human rights concerns and is subject to supply shortages. And they are more cost-effective than other energy storage solutions.
“After an exhaustive review of battery technology, we chose to partner with Urban Electric Power because of their patented zinc-based technology, the low carbon impact of sourcing zinc compared to other minerals, and their material chemistry advantages within the C&I space,” said Matt Irvin, CEO & Co-Founder of Maplewell. “By pairing these two innovative technologies, we’ve gained a unique competitive advantage in our go-to-market.”
“Maplewell’s software is the perfect fit for Urban Electric Power’s battery design. Their predictive analytics and control will allow our customers to tap into a broader range of energy asset management tools,” said Scott Macon, Urban Electric Power’s Chief Business Officer. “We’ve created a unified appliance that is greater than the sum of its parts.”
“Several other players in the industry are focused on the utilities’ needs. We are committed to behind-the-meter optimization to serve our customers’ needs and objectives of their operation,” said Irvin. “Urban Electric Power’s cost-effective, safe, and environmentally friendly solution is advancing our ability to better serve our customers with an improved experience.”
The partnership will begin with three pilot projects deployed this year.
“Maplewell’s JANiiT platform provides the ideal complement to our safer, longer-lasting battery technology,” said Sanjoy Banerjee, Founder and CEO of Urban Electric Power. “Combining our technologies offers the opportunity to achieve much greater savings and further benefits for our customers.”
Maplewell Energy | https://www.maplewellenergy.com
Urban Electric Power | https://urbanelectricpower.com