Editor's Note: Kristin Lund of MIT News reports that construction will begin this month on upgrades to the campus microgrid at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). After months of preparation, MIT is planning to break ground this month on an upgrade project that will revitalize its Central Utilities Plant (CUP), a distributed … [Read more...]
In partnership with Siemens, Santa Fe Community College plans to build a microgrid training center, partially funded through a $351,000 grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA). The Building Energy Automation and Microgrid Training Center (BEAMTC) will focus on product development, testing and workforce training. It is … [Read more...]
Another university microgrid is live, this one in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the latest as higher education continues to show itself as a lead mover in microgrids. The project uses a 1.4 MW fuel cell provided by Connecticut-based FuelCell Energy. “This is a win-win for all,” said Neil Salonen, president of UB, which has 400 full and … [Read more...]
This excerpt from “Fuel Cell Microgrids: The Path to Lower Cost, Higher Reliability Cleaner Energy” explains the multiple benefits a fuel cell microgrid brings to a Connecticut high school and the larger community. Students at the Amity Regional High School in Woodbridge, Connecticut are in for a big letdown, but that’s a good … [Read more...]
FuelCell Energy gets Trinity College microgrid-ready FuelCell Energy has executed a power purchase agreement with Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, to install a 1.4 MW microgrid-ready fuel cell power plant. The college, which serves 2,200 students on a 100-acre campus, expects to save about 30 percent in annual energy costs through … [Read more...]
New York state government is about to walk the talk. The state that has been encouraging its communities to install microgrids now will build its own microgrid in Albany, the seat of state government. Gov. Andrew Cuomo today launched development of a 16-MW microgrid to power the 98-acre Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller Empire State … [Read more...]
Editor's Note: Here we profile the Buffalo-Niagara microgrid in our series on the NY Prize Stage 2 winners, which each received $1 million. The 11 proposals are now vying to win build-out funds in Stage 3 of the $40 million competition. SolarCity’s September 2014 announcement that it would build a solar photovoltaic (PV) gigafactory in Buffalo, … [Read more...]
Say ‘oil’ and Houston comes to mind. Software is Silicon Valley. Steel is Pittsburgh. But for the fledgling microgrid industry, a regional identity has yet to form. California and New York are strong contenders. But the title could go to Massachusetts. Consider the company Massachusetts keeps. GE and Schneider Electric, two energy … [Read more...]
Two carefully-watched microgrids took big steps forward April 6. The Schneider Electric microgrid was unveiled in Massachusetts, and Duke Energy won regulatory approval for its unusual Mount Sterling project in North Carolina. The success of these projects brings good news to the young microgrid industry. But it is still not clear whether … [Read more...]
It’s no secret that colleges and universities are some of the biggest microgrid users. But a new report says we should see more renewable energy and microgrids at these institutions. The report, from Environment America Research & Policy Center, “Renewable Energy 100: The Course to a Carbon-Free Campus,” says that the shift to 100 … [Read more...]
Microgrid-as-a-Service (MaaS) is a new, industry-leading financing mechanism that enables organizations to deploy microgrids without any upfront investment. This financing model allows municipal, district, institutional, commercial campuses and large buildings to stabilize long-term energy costs and upgrade critical energy infrastructure without capital outlay.
The new energy industry is working to categorize the various types of microgrids and business models. The primary goal is to minimize microgrid system cost and funding. To learn more about microgrid business modes and value chains download this white paper.
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