- Xcel Energy asks regulators for permission to manage microgrids on behalf of commercial customers.
- The proposal targets 15 projects by 2028.
As climate change threatens grid disruptions, businesses and nonprofits seek backup systems that can provide power during outages.
This year Xcel Energy has been installing community resiliency systems with three microgrids at Minneapolis nonprofits that allow them to generate and store electricity. Now Xcel Energy has asked regulators for permission to own and operate microgrids on behalf of commercial customers and nonprofits who the utility says will not install them now because of their cost and complexity.
“Commercial and industrial customers are also increasingly considering resiliency options to meet both their reliability and power quality needs, often while also meeting sustainability objectives,” Xcel said in a filing before the Public Utilities Commission.
The proposal, which aims for 15 projects by 2028, has drawn criticism from Minnesota Solar Energy Industries Association and a leading solar installer, All Energy Solar. They say Xcel could use information unavailable to others to market the program and use its monopoly status to outcompete other companies. In addition, they say Xcel could have an unfair advantage when connecting client resiliency systems to the grid because the utility operates the interconnection process.