Sunrun Inc. is expanding the reach of its battery system, Brightbox, to all of the company’s active markets. Sunrun currently has more than 13,000 Brightbox systems nationwide, and this announcement will open it up to millions of new potential customers.
“Sunrun has been delivering affordable solar to communities across the U.S. for 13 years, and now we can provide resiliency with energy storage,” said Lynn Jurich, Sunrun Chief Executive Officer and co-founder. “By bringing our Brightbox system to all of our markets, we’ll ensure families and communities consume even more of the clean energy they produce, rely less on dirty fossil fuels, and have power when they need it most.”
Now available in…
Brightbox, which previously served customers in 11 states (California, New York, Hawaii, Texas, Florida, Nevada, Colorado, Arizona, Vermont, Massachusetts, New Jersey) and Puerto Rico, is now available to residents in eight additional states (New Hampshire, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Illinois, South Carolina and New Mexico) and Washington, D.C.
Record storms, heat waves, and wildfires this year have uncovered vulnerabilities with the electric grid’s aging infrastructure, leaving millions of people without power. From May to September 2020, existing Brightbox customers powered essential needs during grid outages for a total of 7,583 hours, the equivalent of 315 days.
“We lost power for six days during Hurricane Isaias,” said Andy Robles, a Brightbox owner in Oakdale, New York. “The battery kicked in and I was able to power through the six-day blackout while safely working from home. Sunrun’s Brightbox system was a game changer and I’m glad more people will have access to this crucial technology.”
Beyond backing up home power needs, in some markets, these systems can also share stored power across communities through aggregated, local clean energy networks known as virtual power plants. Participating Brightbox users strengthen the electric grid in their neighborhoods, helping decrease blackout events for their entire community.
— Solar Builder magazine
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