Microgrids Installed at 10 Puerto Rico Schools

Dec. 20, 2019
In Puerto Rico, 3,600 children will now study in buildings with secure electricity thanks to the installation of school microgrids by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), Save the Children and Kinesis Foundation.

In Puerto Rico, 3,600 children will now study in buildings with secure electricity thanks to the installation of school microgrids by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), Save the Children and Kinesis Foundation.

The microgrids were installed in 10 schools, many of which had no power for six months after hurricane Maria destroyed the island’s electric grid in 2017.

Read about the inspiration for the Puerto Rico school microgrids here.

The school microgrids offer sufficient battery and solar capacity to back up school libraries, administrative offices, kitchens, and critical water pumps indefinitely in the event of an outage. In addition to the microgrids the team provided roof waterproofing, energy efficiency retrofits such as LED lighting, and curriculum support for teachers to incorporate climate change and renewable energy into their classrooms.

The team members each brought their unique skills to the project. Save the Children focused on fostering resilience to natural disasters and on strengthening social and emotional learning for the students. RMI managed the solar microgrid system installation in way that ensured learning could continue during construction. Kinesis Foundation and other funders provided financial support.

“We hope this project will inspire and encourage other schools and critical facilities to explore solar microgrids as a pathway to building local energy resilience,” said Roy Torbert, RMI’s Puerto Rico program leader.

The program emerged after RMI began exploring ways to help the US territory recover from last year’s Hurricane Maria. The brutal onslaught destroyed the island’s power grid, caused $90 billion in damages and led to an estimated 2,975 deaths.

RMI learned via Save the Children that the storm kept children out of school 13 million cumulative days.

RMI and Save the Children started up the first school microgrid in September 2018 in Orocovis, a mountain town of about 23,000 people 50 miles from San Juan. The microgrid, which includes a 15-kW rooftop solar array and a 34-kWh lithium-ion battery system, is electrifying an elementary school with 234 students.

Do you know of examples of microgrids serving the public good? Nominate them for a Microgrid Greater Good Award. Deadline Feb. 15, 2020. Winners announced at Microgrid 2020.

About the Author

Elisa Wood | Editor-in-Chief

Elisa Wood is an award-winning writer and editor who specializes in the energy industry. She is chief editor and co-founder of Microgrid Knowledge and serves as co-host of the publication’s popular conference series. She also co-founded RealEnergyWriters.com, where she continues to lead a team of energy writers who produce content for energy companies and advocacy organizations.

She has been writing about energy for more than two decades and is published widely. Her work can be found in prominent energy business journals as well as mainstream publications. She has been quoted by NPR, the Wall Street Journal and other notable media outlets.

“For an especially readable voice in the industry, the most consistent interpreter across these years has been the energy journalist Elisa Wood, whose Microgrid Knowledge (and conference) has aggregated more stories better than any other feed of its time,” wrote Malcolm McCullough, in the book, Downtime on the Microgrid, published by MIT Press in 2020.

Twitter: @ElisaWood

LinkedIn: Elisa Wood

Facebook:  Microgrids

In the Race to 100% Renewable Energy, Islands Will Win — With the Right Grid Improvements

March 18, 2024
Looked at individually, islands are often overlooked as unimportant players on the global economic stage. Smaller geographies, smaller communities, fewer resources, and often ...

MGK_MGControllersWPCover_2022-01-27_13-40-49
MGK_MGControllersWPCover_2022-01-27_13-40-49
MGK_MGControllersWPCover_2022-01-27_13-40-49
MGK_MGControllersWPCover_2022-01-27_13-40-49
MGK_MGControllersWPCover_2022-01-27_13-40-49

Microgrid Controllers: Rapid Relief for Today’s Dynamic Grid

This white paper explores six ways in which microgrid controllers can solve common challenges that the modern grid faces, including improving resiliency.