WORLD-GENERATION MAY/JUNE 2016
20
PERSPECTIVE
INTEGRATING SMALL SOLAR FARMS
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6
locations, and from a variety of vendors
with their advanced distribution manage-
ment systems (ADMS) and supervisory
control and data acquisition (SCADA) sys-
tems.
But clearly, this is easier said than
done. According to EPRI’s “Common
Functions for Smart Inverters, Version 3”
report, utilities face two slightly different
issues: No common, standards-based proto-
cols that allow multiple vendors to be inte-
grated, and therefore no interoperability;
and no common view of the specific func-
tionality, or services, that these products
would provide.
ENERGY STORAGE WILL BE
INDISPENSABLE
Of all the issues involved in integrating
small solar farms, intermittency – and the
problems it creates for grid stability, reli-
ability, and safety – is often paramount.
That makes energy storage an impor-
tant next step in the evolution of the smart
grid. While energy storage isn’t a critical
element at the grid level just yet. It is
becoming increasingly important. The New
York Public Service Commission takes it
one step further, asserting that, increased
use of load control, smart devices, and
energy storage will make renewable
resources more economically efficient.
In the Northeast, for example, states
are seeking protection from future mega-
storms like Hurricane Sandy, which rav-
aged power systems in 2012. In California,
where solar generation is king, the state
has mandated that investor-owned utilities
install 1.3 GW of storage by 2020.
Utilities are realizing that to maximize
the value of energy storage, it has to be an
integral part of their networks, not just
something that’s bolted on to meet a local
need. An energy storage management sys-
tem (ESMS) that determines when a stor-
age system should be used – and then
employs it for the greatest benefit at any
given time – is the key to helping utilities
achieve peak performance on their distribu-
tion grid.
CONCLUSION: A SMARTER GRID FOR
GREATER CONTROL
Clearly, the pressure on utilities to inte-
grate small solar farms is increasing at the
same time society is demanding more reli-
able, higher-quality power for everything
from advanced manufacturing to communi-
cations to data centers.
To get out in front of these potentially
conflicting demands, utilities and regulators
are increasingly moving toward grid mod-
ernization. This trend is based on the fact
that smart grids not only help utilities man-
age the impacts of DERs at the local feeder
level but also at the transmission and cen-
tralized generation level.
Smart grids do this by monitoring
transmission and distribution systems in
real time to anticipate problems – and then
reacting to resolve those issues within a
fraction of a second, even isolating grid seg-
ments when necessary.
Further, they will do so whether such
problems are caused by equipment failure,
human error, terrorist attack, or solar inter-
mittency. But smart grids are much more
than problem-solvers.
Planned and built properly, smart grids
will also optimize networks and provide util-
ities a new level of commercial benefit and
operational control – even over small solar
farms.
ABOUTTHE AUTHOR
Gary Rackliffe is VP for Smart Grids,
North America, leading ABB’s smart grid
and distribution automation initiatives in
North America and directing the Smart Grid
Center of Excellence in Raleigh, North
Carolina.
Gary has been with ABB for more than
25 years. Gary is past chair of NEMA’s Smart
Grid Council and member of DistribuTECH
Advisory Committee, US Department of
Commerce Renewable Energy and Energy
Efficiency Advisory Committee, and IEC
Smart Energy Systems Committee.
He serves on the Board of Directors for
the Research Triangle Cleantech Cluster and
for the GridWise Alliance.
Gary holds BS and ME degrees in Power
Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic
Institute and a MBA from Carnegie Mellon
University.
He may be reached at: Gary.Rackliffe@
us.abb.com.
UNLOCKING GROWTH IN SOLAR
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16
(continued page 21)
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