Thanks to a SunShot collaboration at the Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) more than 2,500 Hawaiian Electric customers will connect solar power to the electrical grid later this spring. This partnership between NREL, Hawaiian Electric Company, and SolarCity is funded by the Energy Department’s SunShot Initiative and is helping researchers and utilities better understand how to use solar technologies in a safe, reliable and cost effective way.
Currently, solar power customers across Hawaii are feeding about 20 times more solar power on average into Hawaii’s electric grid compared to those on the mainland United States. Unfortunately, there are 2,700 solar-powered homes on circuits that are currently exceeding the minimum day-time load and are unable to be connected to the grid. In order to resolve this issue, Hawaiian Electric and SolarCity have been testing advanced inverters at the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) at NREL in Golden, Colorado.
The project uses advanced computer modeling software to analyze and address these high-penetration solar scenarios. Power inverters convert the direct-current power (in this case, solar energy) into alternating currents which are then used by an electrical grid. The advanced inverters used in this project will include features that allow Hawaiian Electric’s power grid respond to electrical disturbances, such as the loss of a power plant or a large load tripping offline.
NREL’s Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) houses a broad array of capabilities and laboratories focused on energy integration research. The facility allows researchers to analyze behavior of distributed electricity generation and distribution devices while connected to a computer that emulates the characteristics of a power grid.
NREL completed testing of load rejection overvoltage last fall and has been testing ground fault overvoltage since. This research will result in computer models that allow Hawaiian Electric to connect new customers’ solar power systems to the electrical grid.
This is not the first collaboration for SolarCity and Hawaiian Electric either. Hawaiian Electric, SolarCity, and the University of Hawaii demonstrated smart inverters in the field previously, also with the support of the SunShot Initiative.
Learn more about how NREL has teamed up with SolarCity to maximize solar power on electrical grids here.
The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) success stories highlight the positive impact of its work with businesses, industry partners, universities, research labs, and other entities.
