Identifying High Value Microgrid Deployment Options Across Four Military Distribution Systems with the MicrogridUP Methodology

Distribution systems hosting multiple critical loads with stringent resilience requirements such as military installations could benefit from microgrid deployments to cost-effectively meet continuity of operations and resilience requirements. However, existing electric grid planning tools lack integrated methods for concurrently modeling on-site generation with low voltage (building), medium voltage (distribution system primary), and high voltage (transmission systems) interconnection. This short-coming in existing planning tools increases time, cost, complexity, and uncertainty in designing microgrids for multi-building sites. The MicrogridUP project has created a comprehensive microgrid planning framework to address known software and planning problems that limit the widespread, cost-effective utilization of coordinated microgrid deployments, especially on military sites. The project team includes utilities that hold utility privatization (UP) contracts to own and operate electrical infrastructure on behalf of the military. The framework has been used to develop microgrid plans for four mililtary installations these utilities serve. National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) Research's MicrogridUP planning framework has been able to identify attractive microgrid candidates, optimize their placement and components, and reduce the soft costs associated with the planning process. In this paper, we present an overview of our multi-staged optimization approach to microgrid planning and present microgrid opportunities that have been identified at 4 military installations served by 3 cooperative UP owners.