ABB Offers Plug-and-Play Microgrid…S&C Electric Wins Energy Storage Award for Minster…Borrego Goes Storage
ABB offers plug-and-play microgrid in a box
Switzerland-based ABB says it now offers a plug-and-play microgrid with all components in a container that can be easily shipped.
The microgrid also is modular and scalable with four pre-designed sizes in the range of 50 kW to 4,600 kW to meet varying customer needs.
The system contains battery storage and ABB’s power converter and dedicated controller, Microgrid Plus.
Customers can integrate solar, wind, central grid or diesel generators with the microgrid components. Operations and maintenance occurs by way of a cloud-based remote service system.
The company sees the product addressing the growing demand for flexible distributed power worldwide — on emerging and established grids.
“Our modular, standardized and scalable microgrid solution will provide cost efficient access to reliable power for rural and urban applications, as a plug and play solution,” said Claudio Facchin, president of ABB’s Power Grids division. “It exemplifies ABB’s continued commitment to innovation and reducing environmental impact by enhancing the integration of renewable energy sources and reducing dependence on fossil-fuels, all key elements of ABB’s Next Level strategy.”
ABB has completed more than 30 microgrids for a range of applications. ABB microgrids serve remote communities, islands, utilities and industrial campuses.
See ABB’s white paper on battery technology for microgrids.
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S&C Electric wins energy storage award for Minster
S&C Electric was recognized for its innovation and energy leadership at Energy Storage North America last week in San Diego.
The Chicago-based company won the award for its work on centralized storage in the village of Minster, Ohio.
Designed to provide village residents with affordable, reliable, and sustainable electricity, the 7-MW project is the largest storage-plus-solar facility owned by a municipal utility in the United States. It also marks the first time a municipal utility combined solar power and energy storage.
The project taps into four unique revenue streams that offset its costs. The system began operating in May and is now a top performing asset in PJM’s frequency regulation market (as measured by performance score over a three month rolling average).
“We are honored to be recognized for our work with industry leader, Half Moon Ventures and the Village of Minster, a visionary in public power,” says Troy Miller, director, Grid Solutions, S&C. “The Minster project has opened the door to greater energy storage innovation, and we can’t wait to see where that takes us next.”
Other partners included Half Moon Ventures (HMV) and the local municipal utility, the Village of Minster.
See S&C Electric’s white paper on energy storage and smart grids.
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Borrego Solar moves into energy storage
In yet another example of growth in solar-plus-storage, California-based Borrego Solar Systems is now adding energy storage to its product line.
This marks the 30-year-old company’s first formal expansion into energy services beyond solar photovoltaics (PV). The company will be offering both standalone energy storage and storage integrated with solar PV.
The energy storage division will operate nationally, and not surprisingly will be based in Massachusetts. The state recently announced plans to set an energy storage target and offer $10 to $20 million in energy storage grants.
Over the coming year, Borrego Solar’s energy storage division will focus on working with utilities to develop and install storage. The company also will offer storage to its existing solar PV customers, a 400-MW portfolio mostly in California, New York, and Massachusetts.
“We’re realizing that all across our customer base—from cities, school districts and public agencies to businesses, manufacturers and electric utilities—it is more frequently making economic sense to evaluate energy storage in conjunction with solar,” said Dan Berwick, Borrego Solar’s executive vice president of strategy and business development.
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