RESILIENT SOLAR PROJECT

Supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, the Sustainable CUNY Smart DG Hub - Resilient Solar Project is a 3-year initiative initiated in 2014 to develop a pathway for greater deployment of resilient solar. To encourage retrofitting of existing systems for resiliency and to ensure that a higher percentage of future solar deployments are resilient, battery storage technology needs a pathway to mainstream integration. The Smart DG Hub - Resilient Solar Project provides the platform and works with agencies like the Department of Buildings and the Fire Department to work through the challenges of integrating this new technology into codes and regulations. Contact a NY Solar Ombudsman for more information.

Smart DG Hub Reports and Resources

Sustainable CUNY, working together with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Meister Consultants Group and in collaboration with the Smart DG Hub Working Groups have developed multiple reports and technical guides on Solar+Storage. Resources, Reports and Guides 

Project Outcomes

• A Roadmap for Resilient Solar has been developed by committed solar stakeholders, including NYSERDA, NYC Mayor’s Office, NYPA, NYC EDC, Con Edison, National Grid, NYC DOB, FDNY, NYC Office of Emergency Management, EPRI, NY-BEST and more. Through Working Groups, these subject matter experts have addressed the key areas to resiliency integration: Policy & Legal, Economics & Finance, Hardware Technologies, and Software & Communication Technologies. A Smart DG Hub Industry Advisory Board was formed to further guide the Working Groups in the development of the Resilient Solar Roadmap. The Roadmap includes a pathway to integrating several tiers of resiliency, from immediate measures, such as retrofitting existing systems with inverters that offer “daylight emergency power,” to more complex forms of resiliency, such as large PV systems with storage on critical infrastructure, through a framework of demonstration projects.
  
• Mapping Resilient Power  A new map layer has been integrated into the NY Solar Map to show where resilient PV systems are located, system capacity, and other project details. From the home page, use the drop down menu under “available map layers” on the left to choose “NYC Installed Energy Storage Systems."
  • The “NYC Installed Energy Storage Systems” layer on the NY Solar Map offers insight into the energy storage systems currently installed in NYC. Information on the battery chemistry type, the system size, the location, whether the system is paired with solar, the date installed, and the project developer is available. The systems included are those that have been permitted and verified by NYC agencies and the developers responsible for the systems. There may be other energy storage projects in the pipeline or have not yet been verified. In light of NYC’s recent announcement to deploy 100 megawatt-hours of energy storage in NYC by 2030, mapping these systems and their key characteristics will support market growth and play a role in strengthening NYC’s resilience. As increased numbers of resilient solar systems are installed, a process has been established that will enable the mapping of these systems to better inform utility and city planners.

• Critical Facility Solar+ Evaluator Map Layer is an additional map layer and interactive mapping tool that is designed to display critical facilities in NYC where installing resilient PV (solar+storage) would be beneficial. Critical Facility Solar+ Evaluator Map