Want free solar panels? This startup can help

Building a large solar farm typically takes years, thanks to permitting and grid connection delays. But a startup called Resilience Energy is rolling out a faster way to add clean energy: It pays to install solar and batteries across a network of homes, then sells power back to the grid at peak moments. Homeowners get free equipment, and their electric bills can drop by 60%-80% while they use it. At times when the grid is under the most strain, utilities can tap into the network and avoid using polluting gas “peaker” plants. “We’re going through one of the largest energy infrastructure buildouts of our lifetime,” says Resilience Energy’s CEO, Ameet Konkar, who previously led sustainability at Airbnb. “And American homes should be part of that; the American family should benefit from that. That’s the core principle that we’ve built Resilience on.” A new type of distributed utility Virtual power plants, which tap into batteries and other energy tech at homes to help the grid, are gaining traction. Resilience is putting a new spin on the model. Rather than relying on homes that already have solar and batteries, it owns the equipment itself, allowing it to build out the network faster…