The energy demand for data centers is surging right along with record-setting heat domes and conversations about a new “Category 6” for hurricanes, bringing serious concerns about grid stability on summer’s hottest days. That’s the kind of problem that keeps the heating and cooling specialists at Carrier awake at night, but they’ve come up with a scalable solution that can deployed yesterday: pair air conditioners with home batteries.
Carrier doesn’t just sell comfort anymore — by using home battery energy storage tech to address issues like grid resiliency and peak shaving directly, the company hopes to position itself at the center of a home battery-backed virtual power plant with nationwide scale.
Whether or not that eventually happens, the mere conversation signals a massive shift in the way utilities could think about air conditioners. They wouldn’t be just a load demand problem, in other words. With built-in batteries, they could be part of a load demand solution.
“The homes we have and the fact that they all have air conditioning (or a heat pump) defines how the grid is sized, built, and operated today,” Hakan Yilmaz, Carrier’s chief technology and sustainability officer and head of its energy-solutions arm, told Canary Media. ”The [US’] peak load is about 750 gigawatts — that’s what the grid can manage today. Around 300 gigawatts of that is reserved for HVAC.”
As a graph, Yilmaz’ claims look something like this.
US energy demand curves
“We forecast US electricity demand fulfilled by the electric power sector will grow at an annual rate of just over 2% in 2025 and 2026, according to our Short-Term Energy Outlook,” writes Energy Information Administration (EIA) contributor Alex Mey. “Until 2020, electricity demand was relatively flat,” they add, noting that forecasted electricity demand growth is expected to be higher in areas with plans for large data centers and manufacturing facilities, like Texas and Northern Virginia.
Ironically, the two markets named in the EIA are markets that get extreme summer heat and, in Virginia’s case, humidity – and their energy grid solutions are far from being state-of-the-art. Yilmaz thinks his vision for battery-backed Carrier air conditioners solves for that.
With an estimated 30 million Carrier HVAC units installed in North American homes – representing more than 100 GW of potential flexible demand – the opportunity is significant. At scale, these systems could offer utilities a powerful tool to manage electricity demand.
“If we replace an HVAC unit today with a battery-integrated HVAC, the load of that HVAC unit never shows up at the peak for the next 15 years,” Yilmaz said. ”Use that electricity somewhere else.”
Yilmaz’s team at Carrier is piloting a modular battery that sits under or next to its outdoor air conditioning units to drive the HVAC systems during peak energy hours, which not only helps support the grid but can help reduce home energy costs by charging during overnight and off-peak hours when the electrical load is low and electrons are cheaper. It’s a solid idea, but there’s no reason to wait for Carrier to make the batteries
You can do this with a home battery NOW
We often talk about home solar power and battery backup systems in the same breath — and for good reason: you need a battery in order to use the energy your solar panels develop during a blackout. That’s because your home disconnects from the grid in order to keep line crews safe while they’re trying to restore power, but (while important) it’s not the key takeaway here.
The key takeaway is that clever use of a home battery system, even without solar panels, can help manage your home or business’ electrical use, reduce your energy bills, and support the grid as-a-whole while doing so. And, while I tip my hat to Carrier and co. for the idea, there is absolutely nothing stopping someone from deploying a conceptually similar setup tomorrow.
Heck, the 9to5Toys guys can probably show you a Raspberry Pi unit that’s ready to manage the whole thing for $39.99 or something during Prime Day (no promises). That’s my take, anyway — let us know yours in the comments section at the bottom of the page.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Carrier.
If you’re considering going solar, it’s always a good idea to get quotes from a few installers. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. It has hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use, and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.
Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
