The first all-electric community powered by a solar and battery microgrid launches in California
New clean energy communities are coming to California. Leading homebuilder KB Homes announced Wednesday it has established what it calls the first all-electric, solar-and-battery-powered microgrid community in the golden state.
KB partnered with the US Department of Energy (DOE), SunPower, Scheider Electric, and Kia, among others, to test the new energy-efficient homes at several of its new communities.
The new all-electric, solar-and-battery-powered micro-communities are located at Oak Shade and Durango, part of KB Homes Shadow Mountain master plan in Menifee, California. However, these are not your typical energy-efficient homes with added solar panels.
The houses involved in these communities are equipped with backup battery storage, bidirectional electric vehicle charging capabilities, and perhaps most importantly, are interconnected, creating a resilient energy network.
When combined, these technologies establish a self-supporting energy network capable of powering a neighborhood during a power outage.
How all-electric, solar-and-battery-powered community works
Each home in the microgrid community will come fitted with the following:
- SunPower Equinox solar system
- A 13 kWh SunVault battery storage
- Rheem® ProTerra® hybrid electric heat pump water heater
- Carrier® high-efficiency two-stage heat pump
- Schneider Electric D Energy Center Smart Panel
Individual solar panels will harness energy from the sun and then store it in powerful batteries to serve as backup. In addition, community solar panels are connected to a 2.3 MW battery to complement the network’s power supply.
On top of this, all houses will come equipped with electric wiring for EV charging, while some homes will feature Wallbox chargers. Homeowners can enroll in SunPower’s Virtual Power Plan (VPP) program, which allows them to utilize their EV chargers, battery storage, and other energy solutions to balance the grid load while demand is highest automatically.
Over 200 all-electric homes will be solar-powered, with added battery storage while connected to a community microgrid. As a result, the communities are power-outage resistant, according to SunPower, serving as a model for the future of home development.
Electrek’s Take
Microgrids are not a new invention. They have been around for some time but are primarily used at industrial sites or extensive commercial developments. However, with residential energy use accounting for about 20% of GHG emissions in the United States, the community KB Homes and its partners have built should serve as a blueprint for new home building.
Furthermore, extreme weather is the number one culprit behind blackouts in the United States. According to a recent study from Climate Central, around 83% of reported major outages were from weather-related events. More importantly, the number of blackouts due to weather has risen roughly 78% in the past 10 years.
Building grid-resilient communities using solar, battery storage, and all-electric components can significantly reduce the impact.
For example, Babcock Ranch, a “solar-powered community” in Florida 12 miles from Fort Meyers, had water, electricity, and internet, while over 5 million others were not as fortunate after Hurricane Ian plowed through the state.
Last year, the DOE announced $61 million in funding to create ten “connected communities” capable of interacting with the grid to optimize energy consumption and reduce carbon emissions.
According to a DOE study, grid-interactive efficient buildings (GEBs), such as those introduced by KB Homes in California, could save $18 billion in power system costs while cutting 80 million tons of CO2 emissions each year.
On an annual basis, this is more emissions than 50 medium-sized coal plants or 17 million vehicles. The first two communities in Alabama and Georgia have used around 42% to 44% less energy than an average all-electric home.
It’s proven these microgrid communities work. Now it’s time for federal officials to step up and accelerate this transition. It will be less costly in the long run.
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Thanks to a clever, fully electric swing system and “boom up” power assist features, the big PC365-11 hybrid excavator from Komatsu promises better performance and serious fuel savings compared to conventional diesel machines.
Komatsu says its PC365-11 hybrid excavator uses a “boom-up” power assist feature that captures and stores kinetic energy during different operation cycles, then taps into that power to provide an extra energy boost when needed. The result is 15% more productivity and a 20% improvement in fuel efficiency when compared to non-hybrid excavators in ~40 ton class.
“The PC365LC-11 was engineered for excellence in multifunction applications by leveraging its innovative electric powertrain system to boost job site productivity while reducing fuel consumption,” says Matthew Moen, Komatsu’s product manager. “To highlight these performance enhancements, we’re emphasizing the concept of ‘multifunction plus’ as the defining feature of this machine.”
How it works
Komatsu’s hybrid system replaces the conventional hydraulic swing function with a fully electric swing motor that draws power from an ultracapacitor (as opposed to a battery) energy storage unit. As excavator slows or stops swinging, something like a regenerative braking system captures the kinetic energy that would normally be lost as heat and stores it in the capacitor. Once there, the stored energy can be quickly released to power the swing motor or assist the engine, delivering up to an extra 70 hp when needed to support heavy lifting or digging cycles.
And, thanks to Komatsu’s proprietary software, all of this energy capture and reuse happens automagically during normal work, without the need for external charging. The fuel savings happen because removing the hydraulic load from the ICE engine allows it to run at an ultra-low idle, while the productivity comes from the greater power and overall speed of the electric operations vs. conventional hydraulics.
Electrek’s Take
Trust me when I tell you that Komatsu didn’t wake up one day and decide to build a capacitor-based hybrid crane. One of their customers had the idea and came to them, promising orders. That’s what Komatsu does – from undersea remote control dozers to lunar mining rigs (above), if you bring Komatsu an order, they will absolutely find a way to fill it.
As for PC365-11 hybrid excavator, it’s packed with clever tech, overall – offering significant fuel, emissions, and TCO reductions without dramatically changing the operational logistics of an existing fleet’s operations. That’s all the sales pitch it needs.
SOURCE: Komatsu, via Equipment World.
If you’re considering going solar, it’s always a good idea to get quotes from a few installers. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. It has hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use, and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.
Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.
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For serious fleet buyers, safety isn’t a “nice-to-have,” it’s an absolute must – and Kia’s new PV5 electric van meets that need with a positively stellar, five-star safety rating on the tough European NCAP safety test.
The new “do-it-all” Kia PV5 showed strong performance across a number of key safety categories, including Occupant Protection, Safety Assist/Crash Avoidance, and Post-Crash Safety. The PV5’s robust suite of standard ADAS technologies that includes AEB, Lane Support System, and Speed Assistance System also helped the new electric work van to deliver top marks in the NCAP’s “real world” test scenarios.
“The PV5 opens a new chapter in practical, electrified mobility, offering generous space and modular versatility for everyday use,” explains Sangdae Kim, Executive Vice President and Head of the (relatively) new PBV Business Division at Kia. “Achieving the top Euro NCAP five-star rating is clear validation of its safety performance and will serve as strong momentum as Kia expands its PBV lineup across Europe.”
The Euro NCAP tests highlighted the strong performance of a number of the PV5’s ADAS features, specifically calling out the following:
- Demonstrated strong responsiveness in vehicle-to-vehicle scenarios
- Provides additional protection for pedestrians behind the vehicle
- Avoided collisions in most pedestrian and cyclist test cases
The Kia PV5 slots into familiar territory for US buyers, landing roughly in the same size class as the Ford Transit Connect or Ram ProMaster City, with ~180 cubic feet of interior cargo space available, which is plenty to make it attractive for last-mile delivery and trade work in tight urban markets.
Globally, the PV5 is offered with a number of battery options, including a smaller 43.3 kWh Lithium-Iron-Phosphate (LFP) pack, as well as larger Nickel-Cobalt-Manganese (NCM) packs at 51.5 kWh and 71.2 kWh. The longest-range versions are good for about 250 miles of estimated range – more than enough for Kia to make a case for it as a practical, city-focused alternative to much larger (and pricier) electric vans.
Larger vans, by the way, that may not have that 5 star Euro NCAP rating.
Kia PV5
SOURCE | IMAGES: Kia; photo by Scooter Doll.
If you’re considering going solar, it’s always a good idea to get quotes from a few installers. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. It has hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use, and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.
Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
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