Leap, a provider of software to aggregate distributed energy resources into VPPs, has raised US$12 million equity investments.

Bi-directional smart charging from The Mobility House will turn electric vehicles (EVs) from Renault into vehicle-to-grid (V2G) assets.

Multinational energy firm RWE has started construction on two battery storage projects totalling 220MW/235MWh in Germany.

Another serving of news in brief from around the world in energy storage.

As distributed energy resources such as residential solar rooftop increase in the next decade, aggregation into virtual power plants could save US utilities up to US$35 billion, according to The Brattle Group.

This edition of news in brief from around the world in energy storage focuses on virtual power plant action in the US.

Developer PowerField’s first large-scale battery storage projects in the Netherlands will be installed at solar PV parks, allowing them to connect to an otherwise congested grid network.

Finland telecommunications firm Elisa has received €3.9 million from the government to form a VPP using batteries which could be the largest of its kind in Europe.

The virtual power plant (VPP) network of residential solar and battery storage provider Sunrun in the US is being managed by Lunar Energy, a recently-formed firm in which Sunrun is a shareholder.

California’s net metering successor is controversial, but residential battery storage providers Neovolta and Sonnen have greeted it warmly.