Sunrun Virtual Power Plant Aims to Help Puerto Rico Avoid Blackouts

Sunrun has enrolled nearly 1,800 customers, including 2,000 batteries, in its PowerOn Puerto Rico virtual power plant program, which has been supplying energy from solar-plus-storage systems to the island’s grid since last fall. 

The company is the largest participant in Puerto Rico’s Battery Emergency Demand Response Program. When the island’s electric utility provider, LUMA, foresees a supply shortfall, Sunrun dispatches stored solar energy from enrolled customers’ batteries to stabilize the grid. 

“The resilience of the people of Puerto Rico is truly remarkable. They consistently step up to help their community by sharing their stored solar energy and improving energy reliability for everyone,” says Sunrun CEO Mary Powell. 

“LUMA has already called upon Sunrun a dozen times since last fall to activate our virtual power plant, with several of those being emergency events, meaning outages were imminent. It’s incredible to be part of a program that’s making an immediate positive impact.”