Sunverge hopes new battery makes a splash in industry

At the end of the day, there is one big problem with solar energy production: The sun goes down.
One innovative company that has been quietly researching and toiling away in laboratories for the last two years came out into the spotlight earlier this month with a shining solution to that very problem.(CANON camera battery )
Sunverge, a new company created as a subsidiary of Inertia Energy, unveiled its combo pack of solar panels and laptop battery storage in early February.
The combination offers a lot of bonuses for consumers, said President and co-founder Kenneth Munson. But the benefits to utility companies could be what really lights a fire under the new enterprise, (CASIO camera battery )he said.
The advantage to consumers is that they can spend less on solar panels and still get enough energy from the sun to power their homes completely. Because the company uses sophisticated laptop batteries to store the sun's energy into the evening hours when "people are coming home and using more power," they don't have to buy quite as many solar panels.(FUJIFILM camera battery)
"Of course, you have to add back the camcorder battery cost," Munson said. "But it's still a big savings."
He said that a traditional straight solar array might cost $30,000 to $40,000. A Sunverge system that would accomplish the same ends through different means would cost about $25,000 to $30,000, Munson said.
While that cost savings is appealing to consumers, they will also get bigger benefits from utilities because they won't be buying power during peak times; they'll be supplying it.(KODAK camera battery)
This package could be very well received by utilities, Munson said. Because the energy is stored, and because the company has developed a smart way to group nearby residential homes with its system into a smart meter, utilities will be able to see how much stored energy they have in a collective from Sunverge homes and dispatch that power when and where it's needed, Munson said.(NIKON camera battery)
The Power Tools Batteries Sunverge is using are sophisticated. They work with different kinds of batteries from different manufacturers. The primary choice is a Lithium-Ion chemistry battery, Munson said. But they don't perform well in extreme temperatures, so the company uses different types of batteries.
The batteries themselves are not overly-cumbersome. They fit in with the standard home utility areas and are expected to last 15 to 20 years, Munson said.(SONY camera battery)
The company just announced itself to the market this month and has already seen a lot of interest, Munson said.
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