Innovative ABB solutions for microgrids

The Microgrid Plus System integrates high penetration renewable power into a microgrid, while improving grid reliability and energy efficiency.

Microgrids are small, self-sufficient power grids that serve as a selfcontained, often isolated entity such as an island, a remote rural community, industrial site, military base or municipal, which traditionally rely on diesel generation. 

It can draw or supply power to the main grid or operate in ‘island-mode’, which is one of the advantages to avoid consumers from outages due to natural disasters, thus ideal for rural electrification.

Implementing a microgrid
Setting up a microgrid is much simpler as compared to building a coal-fired or combined cycle power plant. Even so, important steps need to be followed starting from conceptualization, design and modelling for most optimized and efficient solution, deployment and grid stabilization to obtain highest degree of efficiency and reliability.

Innovative ABB solution
Microgrid Plus™ System is built around two core microgrid technologies – the PowerStore grid-stabilizing generator and the MGC600™ controller platform. It is supported by years of microgrid engineering and project execution experience. ABB’s microgrid technologies are best suited for systems of between 300 kW and 50 MW of peak demand. 

PowerStore grid-stabilization generator 
The PowerStore grid-stabilization generator uses a fast-acting, spinning flywheel to store energy and absorb or inject power onto the grid. PowerStore enables seamless operation of the microgrid. Because PowerStore can switch from a full-power charge to a fullpower discharge in less than 5 milliseconds, all the loads contained within a microgrid can be transferred seamlessly between the microgrid’s distributed energy resources (DERs). Temporary power interruptions due to intermittencies from the renewable sources or from the start-up sequences of fuelbased generators will go unnoticed by the microgrid’s end users.

Microgrid Plus control system
The Microgrid Plus control system is based on ABB’s MGC600 controller, and is responsible for the control and communications aspects of the microgrid. The Microgrid Plus control system is decentralized, which means it has no single master controller. It consists instead of many control modules that are distributed
across the microgrid area and communicate with each other on a peer-to-peer basis. This arrangement gives the system a high level of flexibility and redundancy.

Microgrid engineering services
Each Microgrid Plus System is engineered to address specific customer needs and achieve operational objectives. ABB’s microgrid engineers can perform energy yield studies, power system dynamic modeling, and protection studies in order to make a technical and financial assessment of the project.

ABB’s advantages

• ABB global support network that can serve almost any project from local offices worldwide. 
• Extensive experience delivering projects with advanced logistics and strict delivery timelines
• Field-proven solution with more than 80 installations worldwide and decades of operational history
• Proven microgrid solutions that achieve high fuel savings through maximum renewable penetration combined with highest microgrid stability and reliability
• Open, scalable automation solutions with broad application range and maximum project flexibility over the solution’s lifetime

To learn more about ABB’s portfolio of microgrid technologies, contact your local ABB office or visit https://new.abb.com/power-generation/microgrids-solutions.