Distributed renewables and battery storage for the support of the edge of the rural grid

Rural distribution systems have a larger base of installed assets per customer relative to metropolitan networks. Traditional network reconstruction or reinforcement solutions for load growth can be less economic than smart grid solutions. The Western Power “Energy Edge” program examines the use of distributed renewables and local generation, in conjunction with battery storage, to provide an alternative solution at the edge of rural power systems. This paper examines the first year of performance of a hybrid solar, battery energy system for grid edge support. A range of options for the systems future operation, including islanding for reliability improvements and variable levels of battery allocation for peak shaving examined.