How much does a microgrid cost?

Or as S&C Electric’s David Chiesa puts it: “If you’ve seen one microgrid you’ve seen one microgrid.” So there is no quick and simple price to give a prospective customer. Sources we’ve interviewed cite project proposals as low as $250,000 to as high as $100 million. Generation typically accounts for most of the cost.

What is the future of Microgrid technology?

According to Nordman, the future of Microgrid technology lies in making it more modular, widespread, and inexpensive so that people could potentially purchase generation or storage systems and bring them home to use.

Is a microgrid more expensive than a small solar array?

True, larger microgrids will likely be more expensive than smaller microgrids — but in gross terms, not necessarily on a per kilowatt basis. In fact, generation for a very small microgrid tends to cost more per kilowatt than a comparable larger version. For example, a 50-kW solar array is more expensive per kilowatt than 1-MW solar array.

Should banks invest in microgrids?

With solar prices below 20 cents/W and lithium-ion batteries under $200/kWh, it is possible for microgrids to cost effectively deliver energy in the countries where Husk operates, according to Sinha. However, Sinha noted that microgrids are not yet appealing to banks.

Should a distributed energy resource management system be a single-customer microgrid?

According to Nordman, a single-customer microgrid is a better approach for distributed energy resource management systems. He suggests starting small and then scaling up to multicustomer microgrids when the technology becomes more sophisticated.

What is the highest microgrid?

The highest microgrid in operation now is a Level 5. An example is the Oncor microgrid that S&C Electric helped build with a team of several other companies. The highest microgrid in planning is a Level 6, which opens the door to a grid of microgrids, where microgrids can interact with each other and share resources.