BC Hydro Customers Get Breakthrough Batteries for Virtual Power Plants

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Canadian electric utility company British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority, operating as BC Hydro, announced a new project to transform homes in the area into virtual power plants (VPPs) and storage with batteries provided by Eguana Technologies Inc. (EGT:TSX.V; EGTYF:OTC)

In a release, BC Hydro said its new Peak Saver project will offer uninterrupted power to customers while strengthening the flexibility of the electricity grid.

The company said this spring, the installation of 200 Eguana residential batteries begins in Sun Peaks, near Kamloops, and Harrison Mills in Mission. The batteries are able to coordinate and switch to backup during power outages and supply stored energy to others during peak demand.

BC Hydro will manage the operation of the Eguana Technologies Evolve LFP 14kWh/5kW batteries remotely to ensure optimal performance during high demand.

"This important project will help us better understand how batteries can mitigate outages and help keep costs low for customers by potentially deferring the need for additional, costly capital infrastructure in certain constrained regions and areas," said Chris O'Riley, president and chief executive officer of BC Hydro. "Virtual power plants are expected to play an important role in supporting electrical grids in the future, making electricity systems more resilient and flexible."

VPPs use smart batteries at the edge of the grid (the homes and businesses that consume  the energy) tied to software that helps distribute and store energy in the batteries when it's not needed and makes it available to the grid at peak times. "The process is seamless to the consumer," Eguana Chief Executive Officer Justin Holland said.

'Groundbreaking Approach' to Energy Management

Adrian Dix, minister of Energy and Climate Solutions for the province, said VPPs are a "groundbreaking approach to test the future of energy management and build a more resilient, efficient, and sustainable power grid overall."

"This exciting Power Smart project reaffirms BC Hydro's dedication to expanding new and dynamic energy solutions and technology to redefine how communities manage and consume energy in the future," he said.

BC Hydro's Peak Saver programs have seen a surge in participation, the utility said, doubling since October 2024 to over 100,000 members today with Port Coquitlam, Kelowna, and Victoria leading the way in engagement. Collectively, participants have contributed to 40 megawatts (MW) in demand savings — equivalent to charging more than 40,000 electric vehicles.

Through its Peak Saver program, BC Hydro customers can also receive bill credits by reducing electricity use during brief periods of high demand, known as peak events.

"By adjusting energy consumption, participants help demand on the system while earning financial rewards," BC Hydro noted in its release.

Incentive options are also available, such as the Peak Saver Challenge and smart home device enrollment for things like smart thermostats, electric vehicle charges, load controllers, and home batteries.

Both the battery storage project and the Peak Saver program are part of BC Hydro’s CA$700 million expanded Energy Efficiency Plan, which increases investments in tools, technology, programs, and rebates for customers over the next three years.

Growing Interest Among Utilities for DERMS

Each installed system contributes monthly recurring revenue for Eguana through its integrated software and hardware platforms. The Evolve hardware is paired with Eguana's Exchange and Edge cloud platforms, which enable system-level control via a Distributed Energy Resource Management System (DERMS). The utility's DERMS software partner manages this grid support through coordinated charge and discharge cycles.

In addition to the progress in British Columbia, Eguana recently completed fleet-level demand response testing with a utility retailer in California. The company is also finalizing a summer rollout in Alberta to support a constrained feeder and has been invited to submit a proposal for an upcoming utility program in Ontario. Eguana continues to participate in demonstrations across Vermont, Oregon, and Nova Scotia.

Holland has noted growing interest in integrated battery and DERMS solutions among utilities, stating, "We can certainly feel a change in the air as more utilities move towards advanced batteries... to manage near term capacity and demand peak constraints on the grid."

*"The rickety traditional centralized grid structure is at or close to its limits and requires transformation," wrote Technical Analyst Clive Maund about the company on March 24. "The advantages of this transformation will be huge — a massive increase in capacity, vastly more efficient utilization of power generated, decreased demand on centralized power generation, and protection of the end user, corporate or private, from power outages."

Maund said he viewed the stock as having an "exceptionally positive risk/reward ratio" and rated it a Strong Buy for all time horizons, with targets of CA$0.20; CA$0.60, CA$0.70, CA$1, or CA$2.

The Catalyst: Grid Stress

This summer, experts say Americans have a higher risk of finding themselves without power as extreme weather and increasing pressure from artificial intelligence (AI) and data centers could stress the grid, according to a report by The Washington Post's Evan Halper recently.

The nonprofit regulatory authority that monitors the electricity system, the North American Electric Reliability Corp., or NERC, is dedicated to reducing risks to power networks, he wrote. It said power demand is sharply up since last summer, increasing at more than double the rate it did between 2023 and 2024.

"The U.S. is now projected to need 10 gigawatts (GW) more electricity in the upcoming summer season than it did last summer — the equivalent amount of power it takes to keep the lights on in as many as 10 million homes," Halper wrote. "The proliferation of energy-hungry data centers and manufacturing plants is a key cause. They are consuming energy faster than utilities can bring new power plants online. Additionally, scorching temperatures drive more air-conditioning use in homes and businesses, creating a major strain on electricity systems."

An electrical transformer recently sent Europe's busiest airport into darkness, affecting nearly 300,000 passengers, diverting or canceling more than 1,400 flights, and costing airlines an estimated 100 million pounds in lost revenue and passenger care expenses.

Flights at London's Heathrow Airport were able to resume the next day. While the cause was ruled either human error or equipment malfunction, the incident drew attention to aging electrical grids.

Adding to the fears are recent reports that U.S. government officials have found undisclosed communication devices on the power inverters of some Chinese-manufactured solar panels that could switch them off remotely, according to a report published by Reuters.

Ownership and Share Structure

According to the company, about 0.5% is owned by management and insiders.

24.6% is held by the Japanese ITOCHU Corp., the company said.

The company's market cap of CA$3.61 million, according to Refinitiv. Its 52-week range is CA$0.05 and CA$0.20.