Monarch Tractor and its partners in the Farm Electrification Consortium, which also includes Gridtractor, Rhombus Energy Solutions, Current Ways and Polaris Energy Services, have received a $3-million grant from the California Energy Commission (CEC) for the electrification of agricultural equipment and the development of battery capability in farm equipment to keep critical electrical loads running during power outages caused by wildfires.

In addition to preparing for emergency scenarios, the consortium will develop and demonstrate technology to enable farmers to use electrified tractors to respond to conditions on the power grid by charging and discharging batteries to supply irrigation pumps and other on-farm tools in response to dynamic prices and demand response events. The consortium will develop hardware, software and communications technologies to link tractors and charging equipment to fleet operation centers and grid management systems.

“With grid shutdowns, farmers lose significant time, resources and money in a business where America’s growers already struggle to see the profits of their hard labor,” said Praveen Penmetsa, CEO and co-founder of Monarch Tractor. “Our tractor’s ability to provide exportable power and act as a mobile generator will help keep the lights on for California’s farms even when the grid is down.”

“We look forward to trying the Monarch MK-V [electric tractor] in the field and seeing how it works with the Rhombus charging gear and Gridtractor system,” said Don Cameron, Vice President of Terranova Ranch. 

Source: Monarch Tractor