PSE plans to install a front-of-the-meter (FTM) battery and a ground-mounted solar array in a residential neighborhood on Samish Island. The neighborhood already has a high occurrence of customer-owned rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) technology which will also use the new FTM 50kW/336kWh battery.
The purpose of this demonstration project is threefold: to manage the integration of excess solar PV electricity back-fed into the grid, install a microgrid, and test back-up power during a power outage. PSE will also be evaluating other functions like peak shaving, which eases strain on the grid during times of high demand, and frequency response, which contributes to grid stability during this demonstration.
For the Samish Island battery, PSE is partnering with Northern Reliability to design and install the battery, and Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories to design the microgrid controller. Our plan is to test this battery and solar system, and use the results of the testing to inform future battery and microgrid projects that PSE deploys.