Onslow microgrid goes 100% renewables with DER tech

Getting 100 percent of a town’s energy requirements to be met by solar energy and batteries became a reality for 900 residents in Onslow, Western Australia.

For 80 minutes, a microgrid operated by Horizon Power using SwitchDin’s Droplets and grid control technology to monitor and manage the Distributed Energy Resources (DER) of 260 households and businesses showed how it was possible for a grid to operate with a high degree of stability and be optimised for solar without the need for any fossil fuel or hydropower-based systems.

This new milestone took place in June 2021, proving that the successful orchestration of DER on a microgrid with SwitchDin’s technology can help regional communities reduce their reliance on fossil fuel generated electricity and increase the amount of renewable energy they can access. Besides demonstrating the capacity for Onslow residents to achieve greater energy independence, it also shows the possibility of reducing electricity bills by allowing more DER to be connected to a microgrid. 

Lee Ucich, DER Technologies Manager at Horizon Power, and team celebrate successfully taking the Onslow grid ‘hydrocarbon free’ for 80 minutes as part of a test.

Onslow’s energy requirements were supported by approximately 700 kW of domestic rooftop solar, 600 kW of utility solar, a grid scale battery storage system and solar smoothing support from a zone substation battery for 80 minutes. The triumphant moment was captured on video and shared by Horizon Power.

SwitchDin’s work with Horizon Power for the Onslow DER Project started as a pilot and has been evolving to this point over the last three years. It addressed the biggest challenge for utilities and network operators, which is that high penetration of DER would potentially lock many households out from the opportunity to connect rooftop solar and batteries to the grid. We’ve taken these learnings to build on the work we’ve done with SA Power Networks and AusNet Services for the Flexible Exports trial that was launched in October 2020.

The smarts behind what SwitchDin has built for Horizon Power, SA Power Networks and AusNet Services to increase the amount of DER the grid can host demonstrates why it is important to evolve our solutions to meet the needs of Grid 2.0. The desire for the growth of solar needs to be supported and we are proud to see how the Onslow milestone has shown Australia the possibility of operating a grid with 100 percent renewable energy.