Sunnova Energy International Inc. announced continued investments and expansion to its virtual power plant (VPP) network, providing increased reliability, reduced emissions, and lower costs. With its VPP investments, Sunnova is boosting accessibility in California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, and Texas to enable customers to rapidly access stored battery power during periods of peak demand - and in some cases send excess power back to the electrical grid - reducing strain on the grid and minimizing blackouts. The clean power produced by Sunnova's rooftop solar and battery storage customers helps offset the need for utilities to use heavily polluting traditional power plants during peak demand periods.

In return for their demand battery response and contribution, customers are compensated for the power supplied by their batteries in most programs. One recent example of Sunnova's VPP leadership is demonstrated through the LUMA Battery Emergency Demand Response Program (BEDRP) in Puerto Rico. As the leading residential solar and battery storage services company in Puerto Rico, Sunnova currently manages more than 1,000 enrolled customers, where capacity of approximately 10 megawatt hours is provided to supplement LUMA's resilience against outages. By voluntarily participating in the program through the Sunnova Flex Power Program, Sunnova customers play an active role in bolstering the grid and supporting a reliable power supply for Puerto Ricans.

When the grid is under stress, Sunnova receives LUMA's signal and discharges enrolled battery storage via the Sunnova Sentient? platform, reducing grid demand, minimizing blackouts, and keeping the power on. As of March 2024, this Sunnova VPP has helped prevent five grid outages that could have potentially impacted several hundred thousand homes on the Island.

The company's VPP has also been used to provide additional reserve to the grid in moments when generation has been running below recommended reserves.