February 27, 2020 • 2 min read
Worley wins resiliency solar microgrid project for Seattle City Light
Worley has been selected to install a battery energy storage system (BESS), solar panels, and microgrid controls at the Miller Community Center in Seattle (Washington, USA).
The microgrid will keep the community center operational during emergency events and unplanned outages. It does this by sensing power failures and moving into island mode (disconnecting from the local grid) and relying on the solar power and battery storage system with a minimum of 16 hours of resiliency to keep the community center running.
The Miller Community Center
The solar panels and battery energy storage system will also reduce the facility’s monthly utility bills by harnessing renewable energy from the sun and therefore reducing the community center’s dependence on traditional electricity suppliers.
The City of Seattle will use this project to determine how it can develop and incorporate similar technologies, like microgrids, into its operations.
“Worley is excited to team with Seattle City Light and Seattle Parks and Recreation on the Miller Community Center microgrid project. This project will provide real value to the Miller Community Center and its surrounding neighborhood and allow Seattle City Light to understand how they can make greater use of microgrids in the future,” said Worley’s Project Manager, Kirk Neubauer.
Worley used the industry-leading XENDEE platform, part of its new VECKTA joint-venture with XENDEE, to quickly analyze the community center to determine the optimized microgrid for its needs during the proposal stage.
VECKTA can assess and design optimized energy systems 90 percent faster than traditional methods through its cloud-based market platform that links the energy configuration software of XENDEE with an ecosystem of equipment, finance and project delivery services.
“This is an excellent example of how advanced modeling software tools can improve outcomes and time to results for microgrids with multiple Distributed Energy Resources and benefit streams,” said Worley’s Global Distributed Energy Lead for New Energy, Andrea Ruotolo.
This project would not have been possible without the support, expertise, and cooperation of Puget Sound Solar for the delivery 43 kW of rooftop solar PV, NEC for the provision of a 200 kW/800 kWh BESS and Trimark Associates for monitoring and control through a microgrid control system.
The project is being funded through a USD 1.8 million investment from Seattle City Light and a USD 1.5 million Clean Energy Fund grant from the Washington State Department of Commerce.
Design is underway and construction of the new microgrid is scheduled for mid-2020.
About Seattle City Light: Seattle City Light is the 10th largest public electric utility in the United States. It has some of the lowest cost customer rates of any urban utility, providing reliable, renewable and environmentally responsible power to about 900,000 Seattle area residents. City Light has been greenhouse gas neutral since 2005, the first electric utility in the nation to achieve that distinction.
About Seattle Parks and Recreation: Seattle Parks and Recreation provides welcoming and safe opportunities to play, learn, contemplate and build community, and promotes responsible stewardship of the land. We promote healthy people, a healthy environment and strong communities.
