BlueWave Solar, a leading solar and battery storage developer in the Northeast U.S., recently announced an official name change to BlueWave, heralding expansive growth beyond solar development into additional areas of the clean energy space. BlueWave's expertise and suite of capabilities now encompasses the development, engineering, construction and ownership of solar, solar plus storage, and standalone battery storage projects.
The name change, while subtle, marks a significant next phase of growth, fueled by resources and funding from its new parent company, Axium Infrastructure, an infrastructure investment management firm with a deep North American renewables portfolio. The 100% stake acquisition, completed in May 2022, has allowed BlueWave to expand its leadership in innovative solar development and grow into the long-term asset ownership of its development pipeline and also expansion into battery storage, both coupled with solar and as standalone assets.
"We are on a journey to transform access to renewable energy and strive to develop and build the most effective systems to make that possible," Trevor Hardy, CEO and Co-Founder of BlueWave noted. "Our capabilities now go beyond solar development, and we are better poised to address and innovate how energy is stored and transmitted, ultimately creating greater access. Increasing battery storage on the U.S. electric grid is absolutely critical in order to achieve our nation's economic and climate goals. We welcome this next chapter for our team as we continue to push the boundaries of a clean energy future."
Battery storage is an integral part of renewable deployment—it is critical to the effectiveness of clean energy initiatives and vital to the stabilization and integration of renewables to the existing grid. Battery storage enables further decarbonization of the utility grid by allowing solar and wind energy to contribute to the available electricity supply, even when the sun isn't shining or the wind isn't blowing, by storing and then releasing energy when it's needed most. BlueWave committed to pursuing battery storage development in 2021 and is proud to bring its thoughtful approach to development and energy expertise to the deployment of both distribution and transmission scale battery storage assets.
BlueWave is in the early stages of battery storage development within multiple states that have battery storage policies in place including Maine, Massachusetts, and New York, and has been working with local municipalities and state policy makers to best understand and meet storage needs on a local, state and regional basis. The potential community benefits from battery storage are substantial, including local revenue to landowners, improved grid reliability during summer peaks, a cleaner environment that is free of fossil fuels and robust job growth in the burgeoning cleantech economy.
"Battery storage is an essential part of the conversation that cannot be ignored as we seek to decarbonize the electric grid," said Mike Marsch, Chief Development Officer of BlueWave. "Given our proven success with solar development and ability to work collaboratively with local communities and state policymakers to achieve outcomes benefiting all involved, we believe that our added battery storage capabilities will contribute immensely to our overall positive impact on the world. We seek to support our communities by enhancing grid reliability while also facilitating much needed climate policy guidance across multiple states."
