The Public Service Commission of the District of Columbia (DCPSC) has awarded a $3 million contract for a solar aggregation pilot project aimed at expanding renewable energy and improving the reliability of the District\u2019s electric grid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Announced Feb. 24, the project will be led by clean energy developer Ecogy Energy, in partnership with grid technology company Ecosuite. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The initiative is part of the Commission\u2019s \u201cPowerPath DC\u201d program, which focuses on modernizing the District\u2019s energy delivery system and testing innovative energy solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ecogy Energy, a company that develops and operates renewable energy systems, will manage the project using three solar installations it already owns in the District. Ecosuite will provide the technology platform that connects and coordinates the solar systems, allowing them to communicate with the electric grid in real time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is a big win for the District,\u201d said DCPSC Chairman Emile Thompson in a statement. \u201cThis pilot project has the potential to deploy solar power into the District that uses advanced inverter technology to keep the grid more stable and reliable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The project will upgrade the existing solar sites with advanced software and secure communication systems that allow two-way interaction with the grid. Officials say this technology will help the solar systems operate together as a coordinated network rather than as individual energy sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During the pilot, additional clean energy technologies may also be installed at the participating locations. These could include battery storage systems, energy-efficient building technologies and electric vehicle charging stations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By coordinating these systems, often referred to as distributed energy resources, the project could reduce strain on the electric grid during times of high demand. It may also lower costs for connecting renewable energy systems to the grid while improving reliability during extreme weather events.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The DCPSC has awarded a $3 million contract to Ecogy Energy and Ecosuite to develop a solar aggregation pilot project that will use advanced inverter technology to improve the reliability of the District’s electric grid and reduce strain during times of high demand.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2344,"featured_media":1201200,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"_primary_brand":0,"_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","nota_seo_page_title":"DC's PowerPath program gets $3M for solar innovation","nota_seo_page_description":"The DCPSC awards $3M contract for a solar aggregation pilot project to expand renewable energy and improve grid reliability in the District.","newspack_featured_image_position":"small","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30817],"tags":[88936,55430,88933,88934,23686,1275,88935],"brand":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"nota":[],"coauthors":[56985],"class_list":["post-1245994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","tag-clean-energy-developer","tag-dcpsc","tag-ecogy-energy","tag-ecosuite","tag-environmental-issues","tag-housing","tag-powerpath-dc-program","entry"],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\n