Menomonee Falls-based EnSync Inc. announced it has partnered with commercial energy consultant Lower Electric to distribute its solar energy products in Illinois.
EnSync Inc., dba EnSync Energy Systems, makes distributed energy resource systems and internet of energy control platforms. It is targeting community solar subscribers and commercial and industrial operators in Illinois, and will provide the customer origination, project development, design, construction and operation of the solar installations in the state.
Lower Electric is an Illinois-based licensed agent, broker and consultant with about 4,000 commercial clients in Illinois. The EnSync systems installed in Illinois would be up to 2 megawatts, and would be sold to the customer directly or via a power purchase agreement.
“Through this partnership, EnSync Energy has immediate access to an existing customer base and the infrastructure necessary for project penetration into the Illinois market,” said Dan Nordloh, executive vice president of EnSync Energy. “Combined with Lower Electric’s client relationships, the partnership creates a range of market options that align with both Lower Electric’s and EnSync’s client interests.”
According to EnSync, demand for clean energy is expected to grow in Illinois with the planned implementation on April 3 of the Long-Term Renewable Resource Procurement Plan, which requires investor-owned electric utilities to get at least a quarter of electricity sales from solar and wind sources by 2025. It also will provide renewable energy credits to solar operators to decrease the cost of solar installation and operation.
“With the new Renewable Energy Credits program in Illinois, we are eager to take advantage of financial incentives to offer clean energy solutions and lower costs for our clients,” said Ira Holtzman, managing partner of Lower Electric. “EnSync Energy’s ability to design and execute customized energy solutions will enable us to tap into state incentives to deliver more cost savings to our clients.”
EnSync indicated the partnership with Lower Electric may lead to additional expansion.
“Our partnership with Lower Electric serves as a template for entering new markets,” said Brad Hansen, chief executive officer of EnSync Energy. “By pairing our holistic DER and distributed generation solutions with established third parties in prime renewable energy markets, we can quickly launch clean, affordable energy offerings and capture market share.”
EnSync also reported its results for the second quarter of fiscal 2018.
The company’s second quarter ended Dec. 31. It reported a quarterly net loss of $2.6 million, or 5 cents lost per share, compared with a net loss of $4.4 million, or 9 cents per share, in the second quarter of 2017.
EnSync’s second quarter operating loss was $2.5 million, compared with an operating loss of $4.3 million in the second quarter of 2017.
Revenue totaled $4.8 million in the second quarter, up 179 percent from $1.7 million in the year-ago quarter. The increase was mainly driven by eight power purchase agreements, the company said. During the quarter, EnSync closed on the largest sale in its history, a PPA for a multi-residential property in Oahu.
Both revenue and earnings per share beat analyst expectations, according to Seeking Alpha.
EnSync has found some success in the Hawaii and California commercial and industrial markets, and also recently received its first order from the African continent.
EnSync also moved to a new headquarters in Menomonee Falls during the quarter, and its former building was sold for $2.3 million, with net proceeds of $1.7 million.
“Overall, we’re extremely happy with our performance in the second quarter, which is arguably the best operating quarterly performance in the company’s history,” Hansen said. “Our products and execution are yielding great results which we’ll look to build upon going forward. With the success we have achieved with our existing markets, and now with new markets, partners, products and services being regularly announced, we feel it’s a very exciting time at EnSync.”
