New microgrid provides “always on” energy to Connecticut town’s emergency services
A microgrid recently completed by United Illuminating (UI) in Woodbridge, Conn., will provide “always-on” renewable energy to seven emergency services facilities in the town, even during power outages.
The microgrid will use Class 1 renewable energy to provide energy to police, fire, and other emergency services from a fuel cell located near Amity Regional High School. Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy, Department of Energy & Environmental Protection Commissioner Rob Klee, Woodbridge First Selectman Beth Heller and UI CEO Tony Marone attended a commissioning ceremony on Monday.
“As we were reminded during recent extreme weather events, it is crucial that we are able to provide emergency services and shelter to residents who may be without power and heat for days after a storm,” Heller said. “This unique microgrid will help ensure that these services remain available.”
The project was made possible through a $3 million grant from Connecticut’s Microgrid Pilot Program, which was the nation’s first. UI, a subsidiary of Avangrid, Inc., constructed the microgrid and installed the fuel cell.
“Make no mistake, climate change is real, and we must plan for future storms and resulting power outages,” Malloy said. “This project highlights two important initiatives that are driving innovative solutions to challenges that we face as a state: the state Microgrid Pilot Program, which seeks to maintain a high level of reliability of public and utility services; and the Renewable Connections Program, which has expanded the use of clean energy sources in the state.”
When not supplying energy to the town’s microgrid, the fuel cell contributes 2.2 gigawatts of renewable energy to the state’s power grid. Designed by FuelCell Energy, Inc., the fuel cell also helps heat the high school, and the school district has undertaken an additional project to transfer wasted heat from operation of the plant to the school’s heating system.
“This was an exciting project for us at UI because it met several important objectives at once,” Marone said. “By providing a local renewable generation source, along with the design and construction of a utility-grade microgrid, we delivered an integrated resiliency solution to the town of Woodbridge. Completing this one-of-a-kind project was the result of a collaborative partnership between United Illuminating, the State of Connecticut, the Amity Regional School District and the town of Woodbridge.”
The microgrid required UI and FuelCell to design a custom controller device to activate the microgrid during power outages. The controller also enables the microgrid to be controlled as part of UI’s distribution system when it’s functioning independently of the larger power grid.
“Microgrid projects, such as this one in Woodbridge, help to ensure that critical government services are available even when the power goes out,” Klee said. “Connecticut is leading the way in energy innovations, so when the next severe storm hits — and it will hit — we are prepared to respond.”
