Seven U.S. states have completed adoption of a key industry technical standard for how distributed energy resources, such as microgrids, are connected and interact with the main grid and end user loads.
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) several years ago established its IEEE 1547-2018 standard on interconnection requirements for smart inverters. This type of equipment makes it safer for the grid to accommodate higher levels of sometimes intermittent renewable energy, which itself can be deployed to support grid functions.
Recently, the industry non-profit advocacy group Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC) released its IEEE 1547-2018 Adoption Tracker Map to indicate the status across states and system operators nationwide and in parts of Canada. In those states, the utilities and state regulators have selected and announced deadline dates for requiring certification of inverters to the IEEE standard.
The IREC map shows that Maryland, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon and California have completed the smart inverter standard implementation process both by state energy regulators and utilities.
Grid operators and utilities in six more states are on the way to ensuring adoption of the smart inverter standard. Those states considered “ongoing” in their adoption IEEE 1547-2018 process are Texas, Colorado, Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio and New Jersey.
States such as Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, New York and Maine, among others, are home to utilities which are electing to adopt the smart inverter standard. In those states, however, the regulatory commissions have yet to perform an official adoption process.
At least 20 states, mostly in the northern Rocky Mountains and southeastern U.S. regions, are considered “unclear” in their processes. Neither the state commissions nor utilities have commenced any formal adoption processes for IEEE 1547-2018 certification.
The IREC admitted that information is unclear with respect to some utilities as it is still gathering information.
Independent system operators of regional transmission organizations which have completed the smart inverter standardization adoption include the Alberta System Operator in Canada and PJM Interconnection which manages much of the grid throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, Maryland and New Jersey.
The need is immediate and the challenge growing larger
In 2024’s first quarter alone, close to 5 GW (4,557 MW) of solar capacity was installed in the U.S., according to reports by the American Clean Power Association. Last year, an all-time high of more than 32 GW of solar generating capacity was added, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association and research firm Wood Mackenzie.
Stable grid operation relies on manageable frequency levels, while solar and wind are intermittent resources. Smart inverters convert direct current output of solar panels into the alternating current which is used in homes and businesses, while also offering grid support functions such as voltage regulation, frequency support and voltage ride-through.
The future of DERs includes the potential scaling up of interaction between microgrids and the main grid. These growing interactions can include dispatching of virtual power plants, which use intelligent control systems and bidirectional technologies to aggregate distributed energy generation and re-allocate it when and were needed at times of peak demand.
An interconnection backlog is growing as system operators and utilities determine how to integrate an exponentially rising level of DERs within the overall grid. IEEE’s 1547-2018 seeks to aid in accommodating and integrating this high penetration of renewables and requires voltage support from the DERs.
The Microgrid Knowledge 2024 Conference was last month in Baltimore, Maryland. Next year’s MGK 2025 will be April 15-17 in Dallas.
