Duke Energy and Orlando Discussing Microgrid at Wastewater Treatment Plant

Duke Energy Florida and the City of Orlando are discussing building a solar-plus-storage microgrid that would disconnect from the utility grid in the event of outages and provide power to the city’s Iron Bridge sewage treatment plant.

According to a memorandum of understanding (MOU), Duke would build, own and operate the plant. Initial discussions center on construction of a microgrid with 1-3 MW of solar and as much as 5-10 MWh of lithium-ion battery-based energy storage.

Storing and dispatching  power to the grid during normal, day-to-day operations, the solar-plus-storage microgrid would help shave and manage peaks in demand. The battery would also enhance grid stability, reliability and resilience by improving the utility’s ability to manage voltage and frequency, according to the utility. 

Duke’s first microgrid for wastewater treatment

Ana Gibs, Duke Energy Florida senior communications specialist, said it was too early to estimate the project’s cost, or provide any firm details regarding the project’s capacity, design or deal structure.

“The MOU allows us to open conversations with the City of Orlando. The next step is to share information between parties and see if we can design a project that is beneficial to both,” Gibs said.

The Iron Bridge microgrid would be the first by a Duke Energy regulated utility installed at a sewage, or wastewater, treatment facility.

“Duke is building, owning and operating microgrids as critical infrastructure facilities in North Carolina, the Mt. Sterling project, and in Indiana at Camp Atterbury,” Gibs said. “This is one site where we are exploring the feasibility of a similar microgrid that provides grid services during normal operation and also acts as a back-up power supply to a critical facility.”

Duke also has proposed a microgrid to serve the western North Carolina town of Hot Springs. The project is currently working its way through state regulatory review. The North Carolina Utilities Commission canceled a public hearing planned for January 23 on the project, deeming it unecessary after receiving no significant opposition to the plan. The next step is an evidentiary hearing before the commission on Feb. 25. Should the Hot Springs microgrid win approval, Duke hopes to have it completed in early 2020.