Resurgence of Grid-Forming Inverter Technology [About This Issue]

The emergence of grid-forming inverters dates to the early 2000s, following the advent of inverter-based microgrids and distributed energy resources. The “grid-forming” concept was introduced, mainly as a control paradigm for inverter-based resources, to assure the stability of microgrids. Since then, a wide variety of control strategies have been developed for grid-forming inverters, yet their applications are primarily in microgrids or small islands. In recent years, with the rapid growth of inverter-based resources in bulk power systems, there has been a resurgence of interest in grid-forming inverters from power system operators. However, a wide-scale adoption of grid-forming technology is still not ready since it requires updates to codes, standards, and guidelines, along with further developments of models and tools for system planning and operations. This issue of IEEE Electrification Magazine delivers five feature articles and two columns that share the prospects and challenges of grid-forming inverter technology. In addition, an article about e-bikes is included.