Microgrid Demonstration Project

Educating consumers how renewable energy can address growing electricity demand

Posted on April 4, 2014

GE and PowerStream Inc., an energy portfolio company, have launched their first joint microgrid demonstration project at PowerStream’s headquarters in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada.

The companies said the project will demonstrate how energy consumers and utilities may be able to generate and distribute their own energy using renewable energy resources to address the growing demand for safe, sustainable and reliable energy resources.

For the project, GE provided its Grid IQTM Microgrid Control System (MCS), as well as the engineering design services, to help PowerStream build a microgrid, which uses renewable energy resources (wind, solar), a natural-gas generator and energy storage devices (including GE’s Durathon Battery technology) to provide electricity for loads at its head office including lighting, air conditioning, refrigeration and electric vehicle charging. Using the MCS, PowerStream can determine when it is most economical to use the resources powering its microgrid, or when it needs to revert to using power from the provincial power grid.