There's been a surge in investment and entrepreneurial activity in the inverter and power conditioning circuitry that supports photovoltaic energy conversion. Since the beginning of 2009, five firms have received more than $63 million in funding and a large public firm (National Semiconductor) has officially unveiled its BoS product after acquiring a related technology startup (ACT Solar). More than $115 million in venture capital and more than 15 companies have entered this sector since 2005.
We noted the U.K.-based microinverter startup Enecsys in our recent Greentech Innovations Report. According to the Cambridge Evening News, the firm just announced a $10 million round A led by Wellington Partners with participation from BankInvest New Energy Solutions of Copenhagen. It was founded in 2003 and received $500,000 in seed funding from The Carbon Trust with IP from the University of Cambridge.
There are a number of microinverter firms attempting to come to market in additon to Enecys. Enphase has a clear and early lead over what is becoming a crowded field, having shipped more than 30,000 units. Here's the list:
- Accurate Solar
- Array Converter
- Azuray
- Enecsys
- Enphase
- GreenRay Solar
- Larankelo
- Petra Solar
- SolarBridge
- Sympagis
Microinverters offer improved energy harvest and improved monitoring capabilities for residential and commercial PV deployments.
