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    1. Distributed Energy

    Solar and Battery Storage Microgrid displacing Diesel-fired Generation in remote Alaskan Village

    April 19, 2022
    Image credit Blue Planet Energy
    Alaskan Blue Planet Microgrid 625ef20e23c91

    A purely solar plus storage microgrid will help a remote Alaskan community reduce its reliance on diesel generators to provide electricity within the Arctic Circle.

    Blue Planet Energy deployed the hybrid microgrid system for residents in the Shungnak community. The project was funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Northwest Arctic Borough.

    An early feasibility study determined the system could overcome the extreme weather challenges in the region and help Shungnak eliminate the need for its diesel-powered generator sets.

    “Reducing Shungnak’s reliance on diesel generators is a tremendous accomplishment for the community and further proves the viability of solar-plus-storage in even the most remote locations,” said Edwin Bifelt, founder and CEO of Alaska Native Renewable Industries. “The complexity of this project required high-quality technology, and we know Blue Planet Energy’s batteries will deliver long-term reliability.”

    The microgrid includes a 225-kW solar array backed up by 12 cabinets of 32-kWh Blue Plant Energy Blue Ion LX battery systems to store excess solar energy for later use.

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    The power plant still operates, but the microgrid communicates with the Alaskan Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC) system on deciding the best times to turn diesel generation off. Planners estimate that the microgrid could save 25,000 gallons of fuel per year for an estimated $200,000 in annual power generation savings.

    “Producing power in rural Alaska is immensely difficult, between transporting fuel into town by plane or boat and battling temperatures that can freeze generator engines,” said Ava Gibson, head of sales for Blue Planet Energy. “Milestone projects such as this are an exciting promise to the people of both Alaska and rural communities around the world for an energy resilient future.”

    The connection is AVEC’s first linkup with a microgrid in the region, according to reports.

    (Rod Walton, senior editor for EnergyTech, is a 14-year veteran of covering the energy industry both as a newspaper and trade journalist. He can be reached at [email protected]).

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    About the Author

    Rod Walton, EnergyTech Managing Editor | Senior Editor

    For EnergyTech editorial inquiries, please contact Managing Editor Rod Walton at [email protected].

    Rod Walton has spent 15 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist. He formerly was energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World. Later, he spent six years covering the electricity power sector for Pennwell and Clarion Events. He joined Endeavor and EnergyTech in November 2021.

    Walton earned his Bachelors degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma. His career stops include the Moore American, Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, Wagoner Tribune and Tulsa World. 

    EnergyTech is focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids. The C&I sectors together account for close to 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.

    He was named Managing Editor for Microgrid Knowledge and EnergyTech starting July 1, 2023

    Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.

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