S&C teams up with Schneider to build microgrid for utility Oncor

Schneider Electric, Andover, Mass., and S&C Electric Co., Chicago, recently  unveiled a microgrid in North America for Oncor, a Texas-based electric transmission and distribution company that operates the largest distribution and transmission system in Texas, delivering power to more than 3.3 million homes and businesses and operating more than 121,000 miles of transmission and distribution lines in the state.

S&C and Schneider Electric built the microgrid at Oncor’s System Operating Services Facility (SOSF) near Lancaster, Texas. According to a press release on the installation, the system consists of four interconnected microgrids and utilizes nine different distributed generation sources, including two solar photovoltaic arrays, a microturbine, two energy storage units and four generators.

To turn these diverse generation assets into a microgrid, S&C and Schneider Electric developed a distribution automation scheme that leverages multiple intelligent grid solutions from both companies — enabling the four microgrids to effectively operate independently or as one larger microgrid.