Utilities increasingly turn to microgrid technology to solve grid resilience issues for critical infrastructure and difficult to service customers in rural areas.
In 2020, Texas and California exhibited more than 400 megawatts of deployed microgrid resources. Montana utilities boast only one microgrid system in the state, but the technology could prove increasingly useful in boosting rural grid resilience in the state.
Legislators visited NorthWestern Energy’s Beck Hill Rural Microgrid Project north of Deer Lodge this week. The pilot project uses solar photovoltaic panels paired with batteries to improve the reliability of 17 hard to reach, rural electric customers in the area and test the potential for the technology in Montana.
The pilot project uses a 40-kilowatt (KW) solar system with battery capacity that provides 80KW of power to customers for more than two hours. The 40KW solar array is divided into two parts: 8KW of AC coupled solar to feed the grid directly, and 32KW of DC coupled solar to feed the batteries until fully charged. The project’s excess energy flows back to the grid.
System Overview:
- Installed: 2015
- Land Area: 1/4 Acre
- Total Solar Capacity: 40.26KW
- Estimated Production: 55,360 kWh/yr
- Storage Capacity: 80 KVA, 186 kWh
Component Overview:
- 305W LG Solar Panels (x132)
- 8kW Outback Inverter (x10)
- Outback DC Charge Controllers (x8)
- 4kW SMA String Inverter (x1)
- 240W SMA Micro Inverter (x12)
- Absolyte GP Lead Acid Batteries (x24)
- SEL Automation Controls
The project, located just off Interstate 90 north of Deer Lodge, is providing data and modeling for the future application of microgrid technology in the state. For more information, including a real-time production data dashboard click the following links:
