PETALUMA -- Enphase Energy, a maker of solar microinverters, continues the momentum that has characterized the company since its inception in 2006.
Publicly traded Enphase recently celebrated passing the one terawatt-hour of clean energy generated by its systems. That’s one trillion megawatts, a milestone for the solar inverter industry.
[caption id="attachment_79292" align="alignright" width="400"] Enphase recently installed a 2.3-megawatt system at Ruby Farms in Ontario, Canada.[/caption]
“We’re especially proud of those announcements,” said Paul Nahi, Enphase president and chief executive officer. “No other company in this industry -- or any industry I can think of -- can point to such growth in so short a time.”
The Enphase microinverter solution converts direct current (DC) electricity to alternating current (AC) electricity at the individual solar module level instead of a central inverter, distributing the power source as well as optimizing the output of each solar panel. Problems due to shade from other buildings or trees are largely mitigated.
According to Enphase chief marketing officer Bill Rossi, the system “increases energy production, simplifies design and installation, improves system uptime and reliability and reduces fire safety risk.”
Enphase reported selling 399,000 inverter systems in the second quarter of 2013.
The company recently added Australia to its list of international sites. Enphase already claims a strong presence in the United Kingdom, Italy and France. During the last fiscal quarter over 20 percent of its $58.2 million in revenues came from sales abroad.
Enphase has added roughly 57 new employees a year since it was founded, making it one of the fastest growing companies in the North Bay. About 400 people now work in its 96,000 square foot headquarters in north Petaluma.
Not yet profitable, but with shrinking losses, the company is currently pursuing a growth strategy, Mr. Nahi said.
“We’re right where we want to be on the path to profitability,” he said. “Our value proposition is well documented and I see nothing but growth ahead.”
Correction, Sept. 3, 2013: In Europe, Enphase operates in United Kingdom, Italy and France. Spain and Germany aren't part of those operations, as indicated in the original story.
