PETALUMA -- Solar microinverter maker Enphase Energy, putting its recent $22.5 million infusion of funds to use, launched a new product today. The fast-growing company expects high demand from the commercial solar sector will lead to an even higher growth rate.
Announced today at the start of the Solar Power International expo in Anaheim, the new iteration of Enphase's D380 TwinPack combines two of the company's patented microinverters in a single enclosure with a new cabling system, according to vice president of marketing Raghu Belur.
"It offers twice the power of our original product and needs only half the labor to install," said Mr. Belur.
Enphase Microinverter Systems are the only commercially available system for residential and commercial solar PV applications, converting the DC output of a single solar module into grid-compliant AC power. Inverters have long been a pain point in solar systems: expensive, difficult and time-consuming to replace.
Enphase microinverters, communications and Web-based analytics maximize energy harvest and simplify design, installation and management of solar projects.
According to Mike Hall, CEO of Borrego Solar in Berkeley and San Diego, the Enphase technology has made "significant inroads into the solar market, particularly in the residential space. With faster payback and simplified installation, this new product is certain to expand their reach into the commercial sector."
Year-old Enphase has already shipped 100,000 microinverters. At 80 employees and growing, the company has not suffered from the slowdown in solar installations caused by the economy, said Mr. Belur.
"We continue to refine and simplify our technology. Our next innovation will most likely be combining the solar module and the inverter, now separate entities, into one product," he said.
Petaluma-based Enphase has raised about $40 million to date. The company does not disclose revenues.
