HOMER Energy LLC is a Boulder, Colorado based company incorporated in 2009 to commercialize the HOMER® Hybrid Optimization of Mutiple Energy Resources (HOMER) model, which was developed by the National Renewable Energy Lab, a division of the U.S. Department of Energy. HOMER Energy's primary focus is the continuing development, distribution, and support of HOMER. The company also provides training, services, and community tools to professionals, researchers, and enthusiasts in the energy industry who desire to analyze and optimize distributed power systems and systems that incorporate high penetrations of renewable energy sources.

The HOMER Energy principles have been working with economic and engineering optimization of microgrids for over 2 decades. HOMER Energy’s team includes the economist and engineer who originally created the HOMER software while at NREL, along with professional managers, analysts and other business professionals with experience in entrepreneurial ventures, rpower systems, and renewable energy. Our collective vision is to empower people around the world with tools, services, and information in order to accelerate the adoption of renewable and distributed energy sources.

In addition to the HOMER software, HOMER Energy offers additional services such as web-based and in person training and assistance in the use of HOMER. We also customize the software for novel problems or types of equipment. In addition we provide a range of consulting services related to the policies, economics, and technologies of renewable and distributed power.

Since its release, the HOMER software has been downloaded by over 100,000 people in 193 countries. This is a global community of pioneering practitioners in renewable and distributed power. In order to harness the collective wisdom of this group, HOMER Energy has also created an on-line community with discussion forums where users can engage with each other.

HOMER is the global standard in microgrid software, based on decades of listening to the needs of users around the world with experience in designing and deploying microgrids and distributed power systems that can include a combination of renewable power sources, storage, and fossil-based generation (either through a local generator or a power grid). The HOMER (Hybrid Optimization of Multiple Energy Resources) model greatly simplifies the task of designing hybrid renewable microgrids, whether remote or attached to a larger grid. HOMER's optimization and sensitivity analysis algorithms allow you to evaluate the economic and technical feasibility of a large number of technology options and to account for variations in technology costs, electric load, and energy resource availability. Originally designed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory for the village power program, HOMER is now licensed to HOMER Energy.

Simulation, Optimization, Sensitivity Analysis

HOMER microgrid software provides the detailed rigor of chronological simulation and optimization in a model that is relatively simple and easy to use. It is adaptable to a wide variety of projects. For a village or community-scale power system, HOMER can model both the technical and economic factors involved in the project. For larger systems, HOMER can provide an important overview that compares the cost and feasibility of different configurations, so that designers can use more specialized software to model technical performance. 

HOMER is accessible to large set of users, including non-technical decision makers. Chronological simulation is essential for modeling variable resources, such as solar and wind power and for combined heat and power applications where the thermal load is variable. HOMER’s sensitivity analysis helps determine the potential impact of uncertain factors such as fuel prices or wind speed on a given system.

HOMER models both conventional and renewable energy technologies, either as a microgrid or as distributed generation within a larger grid: