With all the severe weather in our region lately, home batteries have been in high demand.Green Mountain Power is working to make them more accessible to people who want them.Those in their Powerwall program receive two Tesla Powerwall batteries, which store solar energy for backup protection.“I like the peace of mind that the house is electrified,” said Kevin Thorley, a GMP Powerwall Program Customer. “If we lose power, we have a backup that will go at least a day or up to a couple weeks.”Since the program began a few years ago, there’s been an enrollment cap and a waitlist of roughly 1,200 customers long through 2026. About 300 customers joined the waitlist this summer after the historic flooding in the state.After GMP filed a request to the Vermont Public Utility Commission, they were able to put some changes into motion starting Thursday.They lifted the enrollment cap. GMP has also started working with more installers to meet the demand.”With these changes we expect that to ease up quite a bit,” said Kristin Kelly, GMP’s Director of Communications. “Customers will choose an installer. Depending on the installer’s ability to schedule them, that’s when they’ll be able to get their batteries.”Once customers do get their batteries, they’ll run automatically whenever a storm strikes, to the point where folks won’t even realize if they had lost power originally.“The batteries switch on seamlessly during severe weather,” said Kelly. “Customers don’t experience an outage. They stay connected no matter what the weather is.”Kelly also said they’re cost-effective.“The batteries also share energy during peak use times in the grid,” said Kelly. “What that does is it lowers costs for all of GMP’s customers.”It’s something Thorley finds most appealing about the batteries.“If the power goes out, I personally like knowing we’re contributing back to the grid during times of peak demand,” said Thorley. “It just works really well. “Customers can lease the batteries for $55 a month for a 10-year lease or make one payment of $5,500.They can also choose the certified installer they prefer.For more information on how to sign up, click here.
With all the severe weather in our region lately, home batteries have been in high demand.
Green Mountain Power is working to make them more accessible to people who want them.
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Those in their Powerwall program receive two Tesla Powerwall batteries, which store solar energy for backup protection.
“I like the peace of mind that the house is electrified,” said Kevin Thorley, a GMP Powerwall Program Customer. “If we lose power, we have a backup that will go at least a day or up to a couple weeks.”
Since the program began a few years ago, there’s been an enrollment cap and a waitlist of roughly 1,200 customers long through 2026.
About 300 customers joined the waitlist this summer after the historic flooding in the state.
After GMP filed a request to the Vermont Public Utility Commission, they were able to put some changes into motion starting Thursday.
They lifted the enrollment cap.
GMP has also started working with more installers to meet the demand.
“With these changes we expect that to ease up quite a bit,” said Kristin Kelly, GMP’s Director of Communications. “Customers will choose an installer. Depending on the installer’s ability to schedule them, that’s when they’ll be able to get their batteries.”
Once customers do get their batteries, they’ll run automatically whenever a storm strikes, to the point where folks won’t even realize if they had lost power originally.
“The batteries switch on seamlessly during severe weather,” said Kelly. “Customers don’t experience an outage. They stay connected no matter what the weather is.”
Kelly also said they’re cost-effective.
“The batteries also share energy during peak use times in the grid,” said Kelly. “What that does is it lowers costs for all of GMP’s customers.”
It’s something Thorley finds most appealing about the batteries.
“If the power goes out, I personally like knowing we’re contributing back to the grid during times of peak demand,” said Thorley. “It just works really well. “
Customers can lease the batteries for $55 a month for a 10-year lease or make one payment of $5,500.
They can also choose the certified installer they prefer.
For more information on how to sign up, click here.
