National grid microgrid feasibility evaluation: Case study of a rural distribution feeder

Many electricity customers in rural areas served by single radial transmission or sub-transmission line have been experiencing long duration of power outages. The need for reliable power supply, grid resiliency and rapid restoration is pushing utilities to take a renewed look at the operation of these rural feeders. One possible solution is to operate rural communities as a microgrid when the power supply line is out of service due to a permanent fault or for any other reason. The work presented in this paper examines technical and economic feasibility of operation of the two such remote communities in the rural areas of New York in a microgrid mode. The focus of this paper is to present high-level results of the case study and also to provide recommendations for utilities to evaluate the feasibility of microgrid operation as a potential solution to improve their power supply reliability and grid resiliency.