Microgrid project to power US Air National Guard base

Sydney-based energy storage company Ecoult, a subsidiary of East Penn Manufacturing, is supplying its technology to US defence contractor Raytheon for use in a new microgrid project.

The microgrid is being used by the US Department of Defense at the Otis Air National Guard Base on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, which will rely on the microgrid to provide reliable and secure power to its critical military infrastructure. There, a 1.6 MW/1.2 MWh Ecoult energy storage system, which uses the CSIRO-invented UltraBattery, will be connected to an existing 1.5 MW wind turbine and a 1.6 MW diesel generator.

An integrated power and energy management controller (IPEM) provided by Raytheon coordinates the supply of electricity from local microgrid assets like wind, solar, battery storage or generators, and matches it with building loads. The Otis Air National Guard Base system will support the military base with continuous microgrid backup power in the case of grid failure, through a combination of high penetration wind, energy storage and minimal use of diesel generators.

This will be the first wind-powered microgrid in the US Department of Defense and the first US military facility cyber-secure connection to an independent system operator. The project has the potential to significantly enhance US energy security with sustainable backup power systems, targeting a five-year simple payback by providing additional services to the electric grid.

“We’re excited to have had the opportunity to work for Raytheon on this project and to support them in the supply of their microgrid solution,” said Ecoult CEO John Wood. “Our team has had the invaluable opportunity to work with its Australian technology, alongside the OTIS base personnel, Raytheon and organisations like MIT Lincoln Labs and the US National Renewable Laboratory.”