Moore Strategic Investors and Emerson Ventures Invest in Scalable DER Software Solutions that Directly Address Climate Change  

Virtual Peaker, a cloud-based SaaS company that empowers modern utilities with the friendliest distributed energy platform on the planet, has announced a $16.6 million investment to expand beyond its industry-leading distributed energy resource management systems (DERMS) platform that provides utilities with wraparound and scalable services—from event scheduling to enrollment to customer engagement—as well as strategic leadership in the fast-growing electric vehicle (EV) sector. The Series A funding round was led by Louis Bacon’s Moore Strategic Ventures (MSV), with participation from Emerson Ventures.

Virtual Peaker is already an international leader creating DERMS that help utilities seamlessly manage their distributed energy resources (DERs), including rooftop solar, wind, residential battery storage, and electric vehicles (EVs). As these renewable sources become more common, utilities are increasingly seeing the value of utilizing software that effectively manages and expands these DERs, and they’re looking for a partner with extensive experience building and scaling programs. Virtual Peaker is significantly expanding its platform to include Customer Engagement and Forecasting suites of products in addition to its DERMS suite.

The company’s suites-based approach allows utilities to customize and scale their software solutions to gain greater value from distributed energy resources. In addition to controlling devices, utilities can benefit from Virtual Peaker’s expertise in operating DER programs, including generating interest in programs, enrolling customers, keeping the customers engaged, paying incentives, and knowing when to schedule events. The electrification of the transportation sector represents a massive opportunity for utilities to leverage Virtual Peaker’s expertise and take the lead at the early stage of the EV adoption curve. “Efficiently managing electricity demand is an essential component of a grid capable of meeting the world’s goal of electrification and decarbonization,” said James McIntyre, Senior Managing Director and COO of Moore Strategic Ventures. “We are excited to invest in one of the leading distributed energy solutions today in Virtual Peaker and look forward to working with them to build a more flexible grid.”

Global technology and engineering leader Emerson (NYSE: EMR) also participated in the funding round through Emerson Ventures, its corporate venture capital initiative. Emerson Ventures is designed to accelerate innovation by providing early access to cutting-edge technologies that advance the development of disruptive discrete automation solutions, environmentally sustainable technologies, and industrial software in key industries. “Virtual Peaker has developed industry-leading capabilities that have significant potential to complement the distributed energy resource management systems of Emerson’s business. This support is a great example of the Emerson Ventures approach – investing in promising early-stage companies with great technology where Emerson can be a true value-add strategic partner,” said Thurston Cromwell, Head of Emerson Ventures.

“If we’re going to get to a zero-carbon world, we can only be successful with visionary investors like Moore Strategic Investors and Emerson Ventures who understand how innovation accelerates change in the clean energy ecosystem,” said William (Bill) Burke, the founder, and CEO of Virtual Peaker. “Their transformational investments demonstrate the significant economic opportunities for sustainable technologies to counter the global challenges of climate change.” Virtual Peaker currently employs about 40 people in various locations across the country. The company plans to significantly expand this year to boost its product development, marketing, sales, and other functions that support the growth of utilities and to help lead the transformation to a more sustainable electric grid.