ComEd announced today that it successfully conducted a test proving that
the Bronzeville Community Microgrid can keep power flowing in the event
of an emergency. The “simulated islanding” test checked the resiliency
of the microgrid by mimicking events that have the potential to affect
power delivery, including major weather events or cyber security or acts
of terrorism.
As the realities of climate change become more apparent, projects like
the Bronzeville Community Microgrid support efforts to integrate
additional renewable generation, including wind and solar while
enhancing resiliency for communities.
Essentially a small power grid with defined boundaries, a microgrid can
operate in conjunction with the main grid or disconnect from it and
operate in island mode when there’s an interruption on the main grid.
The set of tests ComEd conducted demonstrated the microgrid’s ability to
provide power in island mode while drawing upon distributed energy
resources (DERs), including battery energy storage and solar
photovoltaic PV, to serve customers within the microgrid footprint.
“The Bronzeville microgrid not only demonstrated the value it offers the
community when the grid is impacted by a disruptive event, but also in
supporting integration of renewable energy,” said Terence R. Donnelly,
president, ComEd. “This test is an important milestone for ComEd and the
Bronzeville community, and numerous supporters in government, academia
and industry. We’re grateful for the support of an exceptional group of
partners, including Illinois Tech, University of Denver, Argonne
National Laboratory, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Quanta
Technology, SIEMENS, and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).”
During the test, a portion of ComEd’s electric grid operated from
distributed energy resources to demonstrate the capability of the
microgrid to serve the customers in its footprint. The residences,
businesses and public institutions served by this circuit in Bronzeville
received power from a locally sited battery energy storage system, solar
energy and mobile generation. Customers experienced no difference in the
level of service during the test and were not separated from the system
at any time.
The microgrid will ultimately connect with an existing microgrid on the
campus of Illinois Tech, resulting in one of the most advanced urban
microgrid clusters in the nation. Donnelly said, “The microgrid cluster
creates a unique opportunity to study how to maximize the value of the
interaction between two microgrids in the ongoing effort to enhance grid
resiliency and security.”
ComEd is a unit of Chicago-based Exelon Corporation (NYSE: EXC), a
Fortune 100 energy company with approximately 10 million electricity and
natural gas customers – the largest number of customers in the U.S.
ComEd powers the lives of more than 4 million customers across northern
Illinois, or 70 percent of the state’s population. For more information
visit ComEd.com
and connect with the company on Facebook,
Twitter
and YouTube.
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