Duke Energy Battery Control Programs

All North Carolina residential electricity customers with an installed and interconnected¹ Enphase IQ Battery system, and an account in good standing with Duke Energy, can apply for the Duke Energy Power Manager or EnergyWise Home programs. Duke Energy customers must enroll in Power Manager and Duke Energy Progress customers must enroll in EnergyWise Home.

To participate in these programs, your IQ Battery must be interconnected and comply with Duke Energy interconnection standards² and maintain reliable internet connectivity. In addition, your Enphase IQ Battery must be configured in a manner that allows Duke Energy to remotely communicate and control your battery system in order to charge, discharge, and adjust other battery parameters and store energy. Enrolled battery systems will participate in 30 to 36 battery control events per year.

To apply, participants must enroll via the Enphase App, and must adhere to all eligibility requirements, including:

• Participants must agree to participate for at least one year.
• Participants must own the premises where the equipment is installed or complete a homeowner consent form available on Duke Energy’s Power Manager and EnergyWise Home program websites.
• The installed equipment will be subject to inspection and verification upon request by Duke Energy.
• The installed equipment must comply with interconnection standards and maintain internet connectivity to provide required operation and operating characteristic data.
• Maximum export to the grid from the participant’s energy system, including but not limited to installed equipment, must not exceed 20 kW AC at any time, as outlined in the Interconnection Agreement.

Visit the Power Manager or EnergyWise Home websites for more details.

After your Enphase IQ Battery system is installed and you have permission to operate (PTO), you will be able to apply to enroll in the Duke Energy Battery program through your Enphase App. The Enphase App is available for download in the Apple and Google app stores. 

First, navigate to the Grid Services section of the Services page. Then, select your utility provider and state, and select your program to view program details. Click Sign Up for Free and follow the short prompts that walk you through the in-app enrollment application steps, including:

• Complete the Enphase App-based application form:
  • Only key details are required
  • Enphase will auto-fill known information fields based on your Enphase account information
  • Ensure the information you submit matches your utility account information (e.g., utility account holder name, email address, electric account number)
• Review and accept the applicable legal terms and conditions via digital signature
• Submit the application

Key application steps in the Enphase App are shown in the screenshots below.

Once all eligibility requirements are verified by Duke Energy approved customers will receive ongoing Power Manager or EnergyWise Home monthly bill credits from Duke Energy. Enrollment applications are typically accepted or rejected by Duke Energy within two weeks. If you are accepted by Duke Energy, Enphase will automatically activate your battery to participate in the program. Note that activations can take five to seven business days or longer to process.

If you apply for and receive approval to participate in the Power Manager or EnergyWise Home program, you will receive monthly bill credits based on the power output of your battery storage system:

• $35/month for two IQ Battery 5Ps
• $53/month for three IQ Battery 5Ps
• $71/month for four IQ Battery 5Ps

These programs are a simple way to help your community by letting Duke Energy more effectively manage energy on the electric grid and decrease the use of less efficient and more expensive energy sources to support the grid.

Table 1 below summarizes the estimated annual customer bill credit amounts for a few Enphase IQ Battery 5P configurations in addition to the total 10-year incentives, for illustrative purposes.³ 

Other battery configurations are also eligible, but please note that your total export to the grid cannot exceed 20 kW AC according to North Carolina’s renewable interconnection standard. Ask your installer about using built-in Enphase Power Control (PCS) capabilities to automatically manage your discharge for larger Solar Plus Batteries systems.⁴

Table 1: Duke Energy Battery Control Program customer incentive estimates

Enphase and other program sponsors have no liability to participants for any loss, damage, cost, or expense incurred as a result of, or in connection with, participation in the programs. All incentive payments in the form of monthly bill credits are the responsibility of Duke Energy.

You will receive monthly bill credits from Duke Energy after all eligibility requirements are verified.

Credits will be applied by Duke Energy to your monthly electric bill no sooner than your next billing cycle after program acceptance.

All bill credits are the responsibility of Duke Energy or Duke Energy Progress. See the Duke Energy Power Manager or EnergyWise Home websites for more details.

A battery control event for Power Manger or EnergyWise Home participation is defined as the initiation of a signal to control your battery and, within 24 to 48 hours later, discharging your battery to not less than 20% state of charge. Duke Energy will adjust your IQ Battery, such as discharging your battery at a specific rate during peak demand events. Participants will be able to see when events have been scheduled in the Grid Services section of the Enphase App, typically 24 hours before the event.

Yes. Enrolled and activated batteries will participate in every battery control event regardless of which battery operating mode you have selected, unless: 1) You choose to opt out of the event, 2) Your stored battery energy capacity is too low (i.e., battery state of charge is less than your selected minimum battery discharge level) or 3) you have lost your high-speed internet connection (i.e., Wi-Fi or ethernet) to your Enphase gateway. 

In addition, if you have enabled your battery’s Storm Guard feature, Storm Guard will be automatically overridden during all battery control events. Note that Duke Energy will attempt to avoid calling battery control events if the weather forecast calls for extreme weather that could result in widespread grid power outages. Also, your battery will be set to Full Backup mode twelve hours before each event start time until each event end time. Your battery mode will revert to your original settings once each event is complete. These changes will occur automatically before and after each battery control event.

Participants can expect battery control events to occur between 30 to 36 times a year in the Power Manager or EnergyWise Home battery control programs (i.e., up to 18 times from December to March; up to nine times from May to September; and up to nine times in April, October, and November). Battery discharge events will typically range from one to three hours in duration, and will typically be called 24 to 48 hours in advance. In addition, Duke Energy and Enphase reserve the right to test your battery system at any time if necessary. Duke Energy also reserves the right for interruption outside of these date, time, and frequency parameters in the event continuity of service is threatened.

Once you are activated to participate in the program, your IQ Batteries will be automatically set to participate in all events unless you opt out of specific events or unenroll from the program. See below for details.

You can opt out of individual events by clicking the Opt Out button for an upcoming event in the Enphase App. However, if you opt out of more than four control events in a single calendar year, Duke Energy reserves the right to remove you from the program. If Duke Energy is unable to communicate with your IQ Batteries for any reason during a battery control event, it will be counted as an event opt-out.

Yes, Battery Only systems, or battery storage systems not charged by solar PV, are eligible to participate in the programs.

Participants keep the functionality of their Enphase IQ Battery system, including backup power, several ways. 

First, although Storm Guard will be overridden during battery control events, Duke Energy will attempt to avoid calling battery control events if the weather forecast calls for extreme weather that could result in widespread grid power outages, allowing program participants to keep their batteries fully charged in preparation for a possible outage. 

Second, participants can always opt out of individual battery control events if they’re concerned about a possible outage occurring during or after a battery control event. Keep in mind that if you opt out or miss more than four control events in a single year, you may be removed from the program by Duke Energy. 

Third, the program’s 20% battery discharge limit will enable you to have a reserve of backup energy in case of a grid outage during or immediately after a battery control event.

No, participation alone does not void your Enphase battery warranty.

If you are already enrolled in the program and wish to unenroll, please contact gridservicessupport@enphaseenergy.com with Unenroll in the subject line. Participants can unenroll at any time, but unenrolling will result in an end to your monthly bill credits related to participation in the program.

If you do not have an Enphase IQ Battery system installed, the first step is to select an Enphase installer to get an accurate quote and begin the installation process.

For a limited time, Duke Energy customers who install new Solar Plus Batteries systems with a Duke Energy-approved installer may be eligible for a one-time upfront incentive from Duke Energy’s PowerPair(SM) Program, totaling up to $9,000, depending on the selected installed equipment. You are encouraged to talk with your Enphase installer about PowerPair and additional state and federal battery incentives that may be available. For example, Enphase battery systems qualify for the 30% federal investment tax credit, which means the purchase and installation of your Enphase solar and/or battery system may qualify for a 30% credit on your federal taxes.

Enphase is committed to the customer experience. Interested or participating customers can email gridservicessupport@enphaseenergy.com for dedicated customer service related to the program or any customer service needs.

We encourage you to visit the Power Manager or EnergyWise Home websites to learn more about specific program requirements.