Xcel Energy is launching a resiliency-as-a-service pilot for its commercial and industrial customers, with Xcel paying for 90% of the behind-the-meter microgrid costs upfront, getting paid back by the microgrid users over 10 years, and excluding the costs of the program from the rate base. The Wisconsin Public Service Commission May 13 … [Read more...]
Wisconsin Utility Proposes Microgrid Resiliency Program with up to 22 Projects
In response to customer demand for increased resiliency, Xcel Energy’s Wisconsin utility is proposing a microgrid pilot program that could include 22 projects. Northern States Power’s Resiliency Service Pilot would be capped at 30 MW, with a third of the capacity dedicated to governmental and nonprofit entities, according to a Dec. 9 filing … [Read more...]
Panasonic and Indian Utility Team up to Roll Out Urban Microgrids
Panasonic and Indian electricity utility group BYPL recently installed four solar-plus-storage-based urban microgrids on rooftops at the utility's offices in the Delhi region, piloting what development partners expect will be many more to come. The partnership's microgrids offer 5-7 kW of solar with daily battery energy storage capacity … [Read more...]
Lessons from Natural Disasters Spur New Microgrids in Japan
Political and grassroots public support for a resilient, non-nuclear and fossil fuel-free future is gaining traction and spurring development of new microgrids in Japan. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's governing Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) is advancing efforts to invest greater sums to develop smart villages, towns and cities with interconnected, … [Read more...]
Denver’s Peña Station NEXT: This Way to Energy Utopia?
Denver’s Peña Station NEXT offers an energy planner's dream: 382 acres where engineers can start from scratch in creating a clean energy community. No legacy power plants to accommodate, no wires and poles and substations to navigate — the open landscape near Denver International Airport is a rare find in a nation with near ubiquitous … [Read more...]
Solar Plus Storage Microgrid Installed at Denver’s Panasonic Hub
Panasonic’s operations hub in Denver has a brand new microgrid. Announced at the Energy Storage Association’s 27th Annual Conference, Younicos – in partnership with Panasonic and Xcel Energy – has commissioned a solar plus storage microgrid for a smart transit project underway in Denver. The 1 MW/2 MWh lithium ion battery system can be found at … [Read more...]
Ah, Vermont: Beautiful Forests, Maple Syrup, Tesla Powerwall…and Other Quick Microgrid News
Ah, Vermont: beautiful forests, maple syrup... and Tesla Powerwall batteries. Vermont utility Green Mountain Power (GMP) is partnering with Tesla to help its customers generate and store energy a little closer to home, while also reducing peak demand on its grid system. The result will be a more reliable, sustainable and cost-effective system for … [Read more...]