NEXTracker, a Flex company, announced the launch of an innovative solar plus energy-storage solution for U.S. and international markets.
NX Fusion Plus integrates the latest, best-in-class solar tracker, battery, inverter, and software to deliver better return on investment to owners of solar power plants.
By incorporating battery storage technology into its product, NEXTracker is further increasing the energy output and duration of solar power plants, just as tracking technology did for fixed-tilt solar applications.
“NX Fusion Plus is an incredibly powerful development for the energy industry,” said NEXTracker CTO Alex Au. “Our goal has always been to identify the best technologies for addressing solar generation’s intermittency. “
The solution dispatches uninterrupted clean energy in the most effective manner. It also comes with analaytics and monitoring capabilities. NX Fusion Plus enables higher return on investment than solar alone as it helps utilize more clipped energy and offset demand charges for end users.
The solution is ideal for farms in the Central Valley of California, but the company also plans to supply to countries like India, where power fluctuates.
The NX Fusion Plus enables customers to use more solar energy throughout the day while simultaneously lowering their electricity bills.
NEXTracker leverages Flex’s secure data platform with NEXTracker’s predictive smart control software, which is already embedded in the tracker’s electronics.
Complementing this product portfolio is machine learning capability, acquired through the purchase of BrightBox earlier this year, which optimizes solar power plant performance and reduces operations and maintenance (O&M) costs.
Prior to the advent of solar trackers, fixed-tilt systems were the only mounting option for PV and delivered a single output profile. With the maturity of the solar power plants and accompanying technologies – such as NEXTracker’s advanced self-powered tracker– the solar generation curve has broadened, delivering more energy production to owner-operators.
With NEXTracker’s solar + storage solution, NX Fusion Plus, the tracker generation curve is now even further broadened, by shifting excess energy from peak periods to later in the day, the company said.
“This solution brings together the NEXTracker protocol, the machine learning and predictive analytics capability of Brightbox and Flex’s cyber-secure software platform to ultimately deliver more value to the end-user,” noted Scott Graybeal, SVP, Flex Energy Solutions.