A free tool developed by a University of Alaska Fairbanks researcher can help communities with small-scale power grids plan for different energy resources.

Microgrid systems provide electricity in rural and remote communities in many places, including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Canada, Australia, India, Kenya and the United Arab Emirates. Rural Alaska has more than 200 stand-alone microgrid systems. Many use renewable energy sources, and they make up 10% of such microgrids worldwide.

Diesel fuel is the primary source of electricity generation in microgrids. Due to high fuel costs, many communities are already using or looking into renewable energy.

Engineers, community planners and operators use grid modeling tools to estimate how their microgrids will respond to adding renewable ener

See Full Page