23 intriguing microgrid projects to watch in 2023

Source: Elisa Wood | · MICROGRID KNOWLEDGE · | January 4, 2023

Here is Microgrid Knowledge’s list of 23 microgrid projects to watch in 2023. It wasn't easy to narrow it down this year!

Source: Sergey Nivens/Shutterstock.com

Here is Microgrid Knowledge’s list of 23 microgrid projects to watch in 2023 — in no particular rank. We narrowed the list to 50 finalists and then painfully cut it to 23.

For the first time, we divided the list thematically to give you a sense of the trends we’re seeing.

Last year’s list of 22 projects was one of the most read articles on Microgrid Knowledge.

Rethinking the utility model

1. Sunnova swings back at critics of microutilities plan

This is more than a microgrid project. You might say Sunnova is offering up a new microgrid ecosystem – one with fewer obstructions to microgrid development. It’s not always easy to develop community microgrids because they clash with the conventional utility model. So Sunnova has proposed a new approach — microutilities that would operate microgrids in newly built California neighborhoods of fewer than 2,000 customers. The plan requires state regulatory approval. Whether or not that happens, Sunnova has put forward an innovative model that could spur new ways of thinking about the utility/microgrid relationship.

2. Cuyahoga County takes next step to create a microgrid-friendly utility

Like Sunnova, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, sees outdated utility rules getting in the way of microgrid development, so it is bypassing its local utility and creating its own microgrid-friendly utility. The county utility will oversee multiple microgrids built to encourage economic activity and improve energy resilience. Cuyahoga County made last year’s list of microgrid projects to watch too. At the time, we said it would take some time for this project to be realized because of its complexity. County officials, however, are moving forward diligently with a plan to make the county a national microgrid industry hub.