Microgrids: Commercialization, Lessons Learned and the Next Generation Microgrid

Overview

Microgrids are a fundamental tool in enabling today’s grid modernization by addressing growing demand, distributed generation, and environmental pressures among other challenges. Microgrids offer new technology and service choices for customers and can be designed and operated to meet the needs of specific customers in contrast to the utility grid, which is designed to deliver a generic service to all customers. They allow communities to tap into local energy resources to achieve many benefits, such as better resilience, greater use of local renewable energy, and retaining dollars in the local economy, while reducing exposure to threats such as storms and terrorism. Accordingly, microgrids can help mitigate grid disturbances by maintaining energy supplies for critical facilities and services.

This budding industry is filled with complexity and uncertainty causing some industry players and stakeholders to use a wait-and-see approach while others are leading this growing market. This conference will bring together some of those industry leading professionals to share their experiences, the next generation of microgrids, and discussions on the commercialization of microgrids.

Learning Outcomes

  • Discuss the state of microgrids and their future from the U.S. Department of Energy
  • Engage in a discussion on the future of microgrids and the technology that will help make it reality
  • Review the details of the Navy Yard project and how it is functioning as a commercial microgrid.
  • Discuss how Oncor is improving feeder reliability with microgrids
  • Review a case study on the benefit of securing the power supply with a microgrid
  • Review the Brooklyn Microgrid project and how it is allowing a community to have more options in their use of renewable energy through blockchain technology
  • Engage in a discussion with the stakeholders involved with a commercial microgrid
  • Engage in a discussion on the policies shaping microgrid use and how they are impacting the larger grid
  • List some of the components and complexities to working commercial microgrids

Credits

AP_LogoEUCI has been accredited as an Authorized Provider by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET).  In obtaining this accreditation, EUCI has demonstrated that it  complies with the ANSI/IACET Standard which is recognized internationally as a standard of good practice. As a result of their Authorized Provider status, EUCI is authorized to offer IACET CEUs for its programs that qualify under the ANSI/IACET Standard.

EUCI is authorized by IACET to offer 1.0 CEUs for this conference.

Agenda

Tuesday, August 2, 2016

8:00 – 8:30 a.m. :: Registration and Continental Breakfast

8:30 – 8:40 a.m. :: Welcome Remarks

8:40 – 9:30 a.m. :: Keynote Presentation

Michael Pesin, Deputy Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Electricity Delivery & Energy Reliability

9:30 – 10:30 a.m. :: The Philadelphia Navy Yard Microgrid – a Commercial Microgrid Demonstrating What It Takes to Succeed

Microgrids are quickly becoming one of the most transformative business and technological solution sets in the electric distribution field. While the electric distribution field has historically been dominated by publicly regulated utilities for over the last 100 years, the new microgrid business model is rapidly opening the door to a much broader base of businesses and has the potential to address many of society’s concerns with solutions around power reliability and worsening climate change. The Philadelphia Navy Yard microgrid project is one of the largest and most comprehensively based commercial microgrid in the United States, and it is actually underway, as opposed to under plan.

Williams J. Agate, Jr. LEED AP, PIDC, Senior Vice President, Navy Yard Energy Operations and Initiatives

10:30 – 11:00 a.m. :: Networking Break

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. :: Improving Feeder Reliability through Microgrids, Distributed Energy Resources and Energy Storage

Oncor has invested in a multi-stage approach to prepare for microgrids, distributed energy resources and energy storage on feeders across its service territory. In this presentation you will learn about the approach, insights and the lessons learned as Oncor pushes back the unknowns and works to find solutions to the integration and safe/reliable operation of emerging technology on electrical feeders.

David Treichler, Director Business Development and Financial Modeling, Oncor

12:00 – 1:00 p.m. :: Group Luncheon

1:00 – 1:45 p.m. :: Ensuring Security of Power Supply – The Longmeadow Case Study

The Longmeadow Business Estate in Johannesburg South Africa uses microgrid technology to improve the reliability and stability of their power supply for their 96,000 sqm manufacturing facility. Discover how a PV/diesel microgrid with a battery-based system maximized their solar contribution, gave them the ability to island from the grid in the case of an outage, and reduced their CO2 emissions over 1000 tons/year.

Nathan Adams, General Manager, North American Microgrids, ABB

1:45 – 2:30 p.m. :: The Brooklyn Microgrid: Developing a Community Microgrid and Creating a Distributed Energy Economy
  • Working with community leaders, utilities and technology partners to identify the best fit for distributed energy resources
  • Increasing customer options and promoting clean, renewable electricity, energy efficiency and energy storage
  • Create new business models to drive community involvement
  • A demonstration of the TransActive Grid platform, based on open source blockchain technology

Lawrence Orsini, Founder/Principal, LO3 Energy

2:30 – 3:00 p.m. :: Networking Break

3:00 – 3:45 p.m. :: Commercialization of the Microgrid

The concept of the commercialization of microgrids is one that is starting to stand out as a critical unknown for some project stakeholders. This Presentation will give a high-level understanding of the components involved in commercial microgrids and what steps should be taken to understand them.

This presentation will dive into the topic of commercializing microgrids through a comprehensive overview of microgrids through the drivers, business models, risk factors and strategies for successful commercial microgrids.

David J. Smith, Director of Energy Services, Burns Engineering, Inc.

3:45 – 5:00 p.m. :: A Commercial Microgrid Stakeholder’s Panel Discussion

This is a special engaging panel presentation with the major stakeholders of the Philadelphia Navy Yard microgrid that have made this project a reality. Each participant will speak to their individual contributions and the many challenges that had to be overcome.

A representative from the following organizations will be sharing their experiences as well as answering questions from attendees:

Williams J. Agate, Jr. LEED AP, PIDC, Senior Vice President, Navy Yard Energy Operations and Initiatives

Jayant Kumar Ph.D., Global Smart Grid Program Director, Alstom

David J. Smith, Director of Energy Services, Burns Engineering, Inc.

Eric J. Stein, Principle Engineer, PECO Energy Company

David Riley Ph.D., Associate Professor of Architectural Engineering, Pennsylvania State University

Scott Baker, Sr. Business Solutions Analyst, PJM Interconnection

5:00 – 6:00 p.m. :: Networking Reception

DAY 2 AGENDA

Wednesday, August 3, 2016

8:00 – 8:30 a.m. :: Continental Breakfast

8:30 – 10:00 a.m. :: Policy and Grid Impacts Panel

The policies shaping microgrid use are still being developed across the country as their impacts on the larger grid are being evaluated from existing installations and forecast while the impact discussions are ongoing or just starting in some parts of the country. Engage in this discussion on those matters from some of the ISO’s being impacted and leading microgrid professionals.

Panel Moderator:

Jason Valenstein, NY Prize Implementation Lead, Booz Allen

Panelist Speakers:

David M. Egan, Manager, Interconnection Projects, PJM Interconnection – System Planning Division

Rana Mukerji, Senior Vice President, Market Structures, NYISO

Jessica Harrison, Director of Market Research and Development, MISO

Christopher B. Berendt, Partner, Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

10:00 – 10:30 a.m. :: Networking Break

10:30 – 11:45 a.m. :: Next Generation Microgrid Panel

This session will examine the future of microgrids and the technology that will help make it reality with the development of microgrids from a holistic perspective including types of microgrids being developed. Today’s technical power system stability constraints and other technical challenges, interconnection protocols, protection and control issues, and more will be discussed.

Panel Moderator: Arindam Maitra, Technical Executive, Electric Power Research Institute

Panelist Speakers:

Nathan Adams, General Manager, North American Microgrids, ABB

Lawrence Orsini, Founder/Principal, LO3 Energy

Nazar Al-Khayat, Lead Microgrid Solution Architect, Siemens

Eliot Assimakopoulos, Business Leader-Government Solutions, GE Digital Energy

11:45 a.m. :: Closing Remarks and Adjournment

Workshop

POST CONFERENCE WORKSHOP

COMMERCIALIZING MICROGRIDS – BUSINESS MODELS, RISK FACTORS AND STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS

August 3, 2016

12:30 – 1:00 p.m. :: Registration

1:00 – 4:30 p.m. :: Workshop Timing

Overview

This budding industry has many unknowns and while many of those are being discussed and figured out as projects develop, the concept of the commercialization of microgrids is one that is starting to stand out as a critical unknown for some stakeholders.

This workshop will dive into the topic of commercializing microgrids through a comprehensive overview of microgrids through the drivers, business models, risk factors and strategies for successful commercial microgrids.

Learning Outcomes

  • Review the drivers initiating commercial microgrids
  • List the typical locations and settings for microgrids
  • Explain the different business models for microgrids
  • Describe the various risk factors for microgrids
  • Review the strategies for mitigating risk
  • List the components to successful microgrid strategies

Agenda

1. The Commercial Drivers Spurring Microgrid Development
  • The Rise of Distribution Level Resources
  • Resilience for Resilience’s Sake
  • Resilience with a Payback
  • Economic and Environmental Performance Support Controls
  • Incentives
  • Public Policy
  • Community
  • Location and Local Grid Support Issues
2. Common Grid-Integrated Microgrid Hosts
  • Military Bases
  • Higher Ed Campuses
  • Research Facilities
  • Islands
  • Federal, State and Municipal Campuses
  • Mixed Use Developments
  • Commercial and Industrial Campus
3. Microgrid Business Models
  • Regulatory Structuring of Projects
  • Single Customer
  • Multiple Customers on Contiguous Properties / Campus
  • Non-Contiguous Multi-Customer
  • Aggregations / Virtualizations vs. Microgrids
  • Host Owned (Generation and / or Wires)
  • Third Party Design-Build-Own-Operate and Maintain (Generation and / or Wires)
  • Utility Owned (Generation and / or Wires)
  • Host Offtake, Wholesale Market Access and Distribution Support Solutions
  • Public Private Partnerships and Project / Structured Finance
4. Risk Factors
  • Planning and Advisory
  • Technical and Performance
    • Performance Guarantees (Energy, Environmental, Reliability and Availability)
    • Resilience and Uptime Guarantees
  • Financial and Economic
    • Fuel Supply
    • Electric and Thermal Supply
    • Off-taker credit
    • Offtake Volume Projections / Build out
  • Regulatory Alignment of Project Design
  • Market Conditions and Access
  • State and Local Siting Regulations
  • Contractual
  • Project Development and Finance Experience
5. Risk Mitigation Strategies
  • Use existing regulatory mechanisms to structure the Project
  • Reduce Off-Taker Risk: Choose Your Microgrid Customers Carefully
  • Reduce Third Party Service Provider Risks
  • Monetizing Resilience
  • Minimizing Fuel Risk
  • Financing Parties and Bankability
  • Development Team Building
6. Strategies for Success
  • Understand Risks
  • Choose Your Markets and Projects
  • Align with Strong, Proven Partners
  • De-Risk Your Project

Workshop Instructors

David J. Smith, Director of Energy Services, Burns Engineering, Inc.

Christopher B. Berendt, Partner, Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

Speakers

[speaker_list]

Location

Hyatt Regency Dulles
2300 Dulles Corner Blvd
Herndon, VA 20171

To reserve your room, please call 1-703-713-1234 or book your room online.
Please indicate that you are with the EUCI group to receive the group rate.

ROOM RATE:

The room rate is $149.00 single or double plus applicable taxes.

ROOM BLOCK DATES:

A room block has been reserved for the nights of August 1 – 2, 2016.

RATE AVAILABLE UNTIL:

Make your reservations prior to July 25, 2016. There are a limited number of rooms available at the conference rate. Please make your reservations early.

Register

REGISTER NOW FOR THIS EVENT:

Commercializing Microgrids – Business Models, Risk Factors and Strategies for Success

August 3, 2016 | Washington,DC
Individual attendee(s) - $ 595.00 each

Buy 4 in-person seats and only pay for 3! For this event every fourth in-person attendee is free!

Sponsor
ABB