Workshops
RE+ Microgrids provides additional educational opportunities through workshops held prior to the event on Tuesday, March 18. Each workshop is available for an additional fee of $295 and can be purchased either as an add-on to any registration or as a standalone option.
Microgrid Use Cases: Military; Residential; Industrial; Utility-Owned; Indoor Agriculture
Tuesday, March 18
Moderator: Brian Patterson, Chair, EMerge Alliance
The following use cases will be covered as part of this workshop:
Military
This use case considers the development of methods to integrate microgrid assets at existing Army National Guard locations to enable rapid upscaling of energy supply, distribution, and assurance during disasters or extended outages at a reduced capital cost. It covers a hybrid design which incorporates both fixed and temporary microgrid assets. Learn about the methodology developed based on studies of two different National Guard bases and includes the proposed topologies and a comparison of estimated costs of the flexible solution versus a traditional installation.
Speaker: Peter Curtiss, Principal Consulting Engineer, S&C Electric Company
Residential:
Learn about a retrofit project in Indiana, utilizing newly patented DC load center to share power between the 54 homes on the DC side. Planned 260kw of rooftop and 1mwh of storage across each of the homes, with the potential to also add a 1mw of solar with 4mwh of storage in a greenfield, which will also share with the local school to offset energy demand charges.
Speaker: Phil Teague, CEO, Rectify Solar
Industrial
The objectives of the presentation are below: 1) How we designed and implemented a DC microgrid tailored to the needs of an industrial facility, integrating renewable energy sources and storage solutions. 2) How to Identify and overcome common technical and logistical challenges in transitioning from AC to DC systems within industrial environments. 3) Best practices for optimizing energy efficiency and reducing operational costs through practical case studies of successful DC microgrid deployments.
Speaker: Alex Assyia, PE Electrical Engineer, American Battery Technology
Utility Owned
As utilities face increasing challenges in serving remote and high-risk areas, microgrids offer a scalable and resilient solution for reliable energy delivery. This session, led by Angelo Campus, CEO of BoxPower, and Adrienne Pierce, CEO of New Sun Road, will explore utility-driven microgrid implementations that have strengthened grid resilience, reduced wildfire risk, and maintained energy reliability in remote California locations. Leveraging case studies with major California IOUs, the presentation will detail how modular microgrid technology and real-time monitoring platforms can replace traditional distribution lines, providing a cost-effective alternative for maintaining service in hard-to-reach areas. Attendees will gain insights into deployment strategies, scalability, and measurable impacts on resilience and cost savings.
Speaker: Angelo Campus, CEO, BoxPower
Indoor Agriculture
Indoor agriculture requires highly controlled environments, and energy-intensive lighting, HVAC, and water systems make microgrids an ideal solution for ensuring operational sustainability. This use case presentation will explore how smart microgrid integration in an indoor agriculture facility optimized energy use and significantly reduced water consumption. Through a case study, we’ll illustrate the planning, implementation, and operational stages, highlighting the financial and environmental benefits realized by the facility and how this model can be adapted to similar operations.
Speaker: Denise Anderson-Rivas, Founder and Director of Environmental Content, A.R. Environmental Content Marketing
The Policy Landscape and Critical Regulatory Challenges to Microgrid Market Development
Join policy experts as they share examples of policy barriers to microgrid installations, workarounds that moved projects forward, and the questions that should be asked for every project. Workshop segments include:
- Think Microgrid leaders will provide an overview of their “2024 State Scorecard” where they use an evaluation framework that considers five fundamental criteria: deployment, policy reform, resilience, market development, and equity. Learn about how these microgrid road maps help identify where and what microgrid policies are needed.
- Industry leaders from Bloom Energy and Schneider will share specific examples of barriers, how they impacted project development, and what workarounds were implemented to move projects forward.
- Wrap up – how to get to “yes.” Where participants can learn more about workarounds or solutions to overcoming barriers.
Speakers:
- Jeff Morris, Senior Director, State Government Relations, Schneider Electric North America
- Cameron Brooks, Executive Director, Think Microgrid
- Cole Triedman, Policy Director, Think Microgrid
- Charles Fox, Vice President, Bloom Energy
