Stem, a US provider of energy storage systems, has secured US$5m investment from Clean Feet Investors that will allow it to offer battery systems to commercial and industrial customers with no upfront costs.
The company is offering long-term financing options that are similar to the leases and power-purchase agreements used in the solar PV sector. Stem claims battery systems let customers reduce their peak power-demand expenses and cut utility bills by 10% to 40%.
In a statement, Stem said the batteries store power from the grid during non-peak hours for use during peak periods. A typical commercial customer will use three of Stem’s 18kW systems, a total of 54 kWh of storage capacity, which cost about US$97 000.
Most contracts will be for 10 years and customers will have the option to buy the systems.
The lithium-ion battery systems are connected to cloud-based analytics that can determine when it’s best to draw energy from the battery and cut the demand charges that come during peak usage hours. Stem’s customers, which include InterContinental Hotels, are mostly in California, where there are relatively high demand charges and subsidies for energy storage.
