EarthSpark’s Open-sourcing Thundercloud 2.0: what it means for you

EarthSpark has announced the open-sourcing of Thundercloud 2.0. What does that mean for current EarthSpark Meter Ops customers using the SparkMeter metering system and other mini-grid operators evaluating what metering system to procure for future grids?

For most customers, the short answer is: nothing changes right now. The EarthSpark team will continue supporting new and existing customers, and no action is needed on your part. You do now have more options, as we outline below. 

Background : EarthSpark International is a non-profit organization that took over operations of SparkMeter Inc.’s energy access metering operations in September 2025. At the time, there was a looming and valid fear that SparkMeter’s closing would lead to massive blackouts in minigrid utilities around the world. EarthSpark stepped in to prevent that from happening and to build a viable path forward for smart metering in the minigrid sector.

EarthSpark has kept the legacy SparkMeter operations online while also making tangible improvements. 

As part of that work,  the EarthSpark team has been updating and improving the flagship ThunderCloud smart metering software, which is the most widely-adopted smart metering software in the sector. To best meet customer needs and invite collaboration, EarthSpark is releasing a pre-production version of ThunderCloud 2.0 under an open source license.

Below are some anticipated frequently asked questions (FAQs) on the release:

Does this affect the system running my meters today? 
No. SparkMeter basestations in the field today run Thundercloud 1.x, and they keep running exactly as they do now. Open-sourcing doesn't change, interrupt, or require anything from your current deployment. What we're open-sourcing is Thundercloud 2.0, the next generation of the platform.

What is Thundercloud 2.0? 
Thundercloud 1.x was built against a number of internal SparkMeter systems and older build tools that are now end-of-life, which makes it hard to maintain or install outside our own environment. Thundercloud 2.0 modernizes that foundation with updated dependencies, a modern build pipeline, and open replacements for the internal pieces. The result is a clean, working system to build the future of Thundercloud on, together.

It's a work in progress. It isn't yet ready to deploy to existing basestations or to install on new hardware, but it's far enough along to develop in the open.

What changes now that it's open source? 
We've been building Thundercloud 2.0 internally for months. Open-sourcing lets us keep doing that work in the open and build a community around it:

• Community contributions: developers who want to help can build and test features and fix bugs alongside us.
• Open issue tracking: bugs and feature requests move to public GitHub issues, where anyone can weigh in on a proposed feature or problem.
• Transparency: you can see exactly what's being worked on and why, and take part in the discussion.
  
  

The goal is to make it easier to be sure we're building what the community actually needs.
When will I be able to install Thundercloud 2.0? We're testing Thundercloud 2.0 alongside several new infrastructure components, working toward the point where it can be installed both as an upgrade to Thundercloud 1.x and on new hardware. The likely path:

1. Beta: customers with the technical capability can try the new system before an official release.
2. Stable release: once we agree it's ready, Thundercloud 2.0 becomes the stable version.
3. Rollout: we begin updating existing systems and publish documentation for setting up a self-hosted basestation for any operator who would like to self-host.
   
   

At that point you'll be able to run Thundercloud 2.0 on hardware you buy from us, hardware you procure yourself, or hardware we recommend, using publicly available software images. Some of these details, including how images are distributed, are still open, and we want them shaped by customer input in the GitHub issues forum.

What is a Thundercloud deployment?
A Thundercloud deployment has two parts that work together:

• The basestation (the "ground" system): hardware at your site that talks to your meters and runs the grid locally.
• The cloud: a server, running at a cloud provider or on your own hardware, that the basestation syncs with. The cloud is what gives you remote access to your basestation and your grid data from anywhere.
  
  

The two sync with each other continuously. Open-sourcing Thundercloud 2.0 means you can choose who supplies the basestation and who runs each part, so "self-hosting" isn't all-or-nothing.

What are my options for operating my SparkMeter metering system?
You can mix and match who provides the basestation hardware and who runs the cloud. Some of the shapes that can take:

• Fully managed by Earthspark: buy a ready-to-run Thundercloud 2.0 basestation from Earthspark and use our hosted cloud. You aren't self-hosting anything: we run and maintain the cloud, you run your grid.
• Your basestation, our cloud: build or procure your own basestation and install Thundercloud 2.0 on it, then sync it to an Earthspark-hosted cloud. You pay Earthspark a service fee instead of paying a cloud provider directly, and we keep the cloud running.
• Our basestation, your cloud: buy a basestation from Earthspark, but run the cloud side yourself, on your own server on-prem or on a cloud provider such as AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, DigitalOcean, Heroku, or Railway.
• Fully self-hosted: run both halves yourself, your own basestation and your own cloud. Everything needed will be on GitHub, so with the right technical knowledge you can run the entire system end to end. The trade-off is that maintaining all of it becomes your responsibility.
  
  

These are examples, not a fixed menu. There's room in between, depending on what you want to run yourself, how much support you want, and what you'd rather have Earthspark provide as a service. We're still working out exactly what these arrangements (and their support and pricing) look like, and that will be guided heavily by what customers tell us they need. Our aim is simple: give you the support and services to run your grid, in a way that fits your needs and your technical capacity.

When does all of this happen?
A lot of it depends on the community. EarthSpark will continue to support core team engineers. The more people who get involved (engineers building and testing code, customers filing issues and answering open questions, and community members helping organize and sustain the project), the sooner we reach a strong, stable release, and the better it will be when we get there.

We'll get there either way. Together, we'll get there sooner.

Version 1 of minigrid metering was closed. V2 is open. We’re thrilled to be working together with you to solve energy access. Thanks for all the good hard work you’re doing to expand access to electricity!

What if I still have questions?
You may always contact our team at [email protected] or through our other customer service channels. 
For questions on the open source project, a Dischord channel has been created for users (go here to chat with other grid operators using SparkMeter deployments) and for developers (go here to chat about coding and the open source software development project.) Anybody may submit a feature request here. [links forthcoming]

All normal customer service requests about your specific deployment should still be routed through your usual customer service channels. For more information about the SparkMeter product line, please visit www.sparkmeter.io.

In community,
The EarthSpark Meter Ops team