Renewable energy can be frustratingly immobile. It can travel easily through the grid, but can’t be transported in a tanker the way diesel fuel can.

After experiencing power outages in emergency situations like Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav, Todd Meyers realized just how important electricity can be at critical times. Right now, we use diesel-fueled generators as back-up for power failures, but this is a time to be looking for alternatives to fossil fuel use, and that’s what he did.

Meyers’ company, GreenTow, manufactures self-contained mobile solar panel trailers, which can be towed behind any V8 engine. The trailers come with solar panels, batteries, and a diesel generator for back-up.

Meyers initially thought he’d sell the units to emergency organizations like FEMA, to be used in areas where power is out and crews need to work, but the company has yet to ship any trailers to emergency crews. Instead, their customers have been construction crews and Colorado national parks who routinely need power tools and electricity in areas where the grid isn’t available.

Construction especially can suck up energy and fuel, and towable power units, emitting no greenhouse gases and outfitted with backup generators are a possible avenue to green the industry.

There’s now interest in bringing the solar trailers to Africa, where unreliable grid energy is a barrier to manufacturing investments. Localizing power could be a way to draw in more industry and create more opportunities there.