Installations begin week of April 27 in Ann Arbor, testing a new model for grid reliability and energy affordability
SAN JOSE, Calif., April 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — FranklinWH announced today it will begin installation in participating homes in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the week of April 27 as part of a pilot program led by the Ann Arbor Sustainable Energy Utility (A2SEU).
The initiative is a first-of-its-kind pilot led by a U.S. city-owned utility to purchase and deploy residential solar and battery systems for behind-the-meter energy use. The program will examine how distributed home energy resources can support grid reliability, reduce household energy costs and expand access to locally generated renewable power.
The opt-in program is available to residents in Ann Arbor’s Bryant neighborhood, where many households are energy-burdened, with some spending more than one-third of their income on utility bills. By pairing rooftop solar with battery storage, the program is designed to reduce costs while improving energy resilience at the household and community level.
“Ann Arbor is showing how cities can play a leading role in advancing local energy solutions,” said Gary Lam, CEO and cofounder of FranklinWH. “By bringing solar and battery storage together through a city-led program, residents can lower utility costs, improve reliability, and help ease pressure on the grid during peak demand. It reflects how cities and utilities are increasingly using local programs to improve reliability and manage energy demand.”
Ann Arbor voters approved the creation of the Sustainable Energy Utility in November 2024. The community-owned utility operates as an optional, supplemental energy provider, delivering 100 percent locally generated renewable energy.
As part of the program, approximately 150 homes will be equipped with the FranklinWH System, including the aPower S battery. The project is expected to expand to 1,000 homes in 2027, with additional scale planned in subsequent years.
“In our evaluation, FranklinWH stood out for both technical performance and customer experience,” said Shoshannah Lenski, executive director of A2SEU. “Paired with local solar generation, these systems will help us deliver more reliable, resilient energy across our community.”
Under the program, the FranklinWH System, an energy management and storage solution, will be paired with rooftop solar installations from Michigan Solar Solutions, Homeland Solar, and Oak Electric Service. Texture’s distributed energy management software will aggregate the systems into a coordinated, utility-scale resource.
FranklinWH currently participates in more than 20 utility-led virtual power plant (VPP) and demand response programs. The Ann Arbor project extends that model into a city-owned residential program designed to evaluate how aggregated home energy systems can function as a coordinated resource at community scale.
About FranklinWH
FranklinWH Energy Storage is the manufacturer of the FranklinWH System, a next-generation home energy management and storage solution. Headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, FranklinWH’s team brings decades of experience across energy system design, manufacturing, sales, and installation. The company is AVL-listed with multiple financial institutions and continues to empower homeowners to achieve true energy freedom. Learn more at franklinwh.com.
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