Watts Happening: InterSolar Europe Tradeshow Shines a Light on Storage

Research evidence excerpt

Watts Happening: InterSolar Europe Tradeshow Shines a Light on Storage

opers increasingly pair batteries

with solar projects to improve project economics and mitigate power price volatility. We also

continue to see a meaningful divergence between Europe and the U.S., with European demand

being driven by electrification of transportation, heating, and industry, while U.S. growth

remains centered around AI-driven electricity demand and data centers. Across both regions,

however, utilities continue to prioritize grid modernization as renewable penetration increases.

One of our biggest takeaways was how rapidly the industry's technology roadmap continues

to evolve. Battery storage, bidirectional charging, virtual power plants, grid-forming inverters,

and software-defined energy management were recurring discussion points throughout

the week, reinforcing our view that the inverter is increasingly becoming the "brain" of the

electrical system. Meanwhile, geopolitical developments continue to accelerate Europe's push

toward energy independence, domestic manufacturing, and energy storage. Against that

backdrop, our top ideas remain SHLS, SEDG, and ARRY for global exposure, alongside FSLR

and RUN for U.S. demand.

Our review of air permits filed with the Texas Commission of Environmental Quality

identified Bloom fuel cells being deployed at a proposed 248MW behind-the-meter facility

supporting a co-located AI data center campus in Bee Country Texas. The project, identified

as the Atticus Power Opco 1 LLC Behind-the-Meter Facility located at 5811 Co Rd 136, Beeville

is being developed and sized at up to 248MW nominal net generating capacity using Bloom

SOFCs configured at four ES5/ES10 platform packages. The facility is designed for permanent