US-based independent solar and storage projects developer 8minute Solar Energy and Doosan GridTech, a provider of software solutions for electric utilities, have partnered for advanced solar photovoltaic plus storage centers (PVS)
Under the collaboration, 8minute and Doosan will develop an advanced energy software control solution for dispatching energy from PVS facilities.
8minute Solar Energy president and CEO Tom Buttgenbach said: “Dispatchable large-scale solar paired with energy storage will be the backbone of the 21st-Century grid. Smart, innovative software that communicates with the grid is a hugely important part of that future. Partnering with Doosan and their deep experience with energy storage control platforms is a perfect fit.
“Matching Doosan’s software ingenuity with our best-in-class technology, engineering, and sophisticated infrastructure financing, we will continue to deliver results and drive down costs while increasing energy production.”
The new solution will be first used at the Springbok 3 Solar Farm
The new collaboration combines Doosan’s flexible software platform and energy storage expertise with 8minute’s advanced PVS dispatch approach to create maximum asset value.
The new solution is planned to be first used at the Springbok 3 Solar Farm, which is part of the 448 MW Springbok solar cluster in Kern County, California, US.
Springbok facility was developed by 8minute and is capable of supplying adequate clean energy for more than 152,000 households in Los Angeles.
The new control solution is aimed at improving the predictability of PVS plant output and provide additional value for 8minute and its Springbok 3 off-taker, the Los Angeles Department of Power & Water (LADWP).
At Springbok 3 site, the solution is operated in several modes including active power smoothing, predictive active power response and gives a smoother power output from the PVS system.
Furthermore, the solution is expected to use the Modular Energy Storage Architecture alliance (MESA)-ESS as the communication standard between the site and the off-taker LADWP.
Doosan GridTech CEO Daejin Choi said: “We are honored that the largest independent solar developer in the country has chosen us to work with them to deliver a new approach in predictive dispatch strategies.
“This engagement capitalizes on our deep visionary legacy developing some of the earliest open standards utility-integrated storage systems, and helps us shape the next wave of PVS deployments between the developer community and their utility off-takers.”