Using Distribution-Level Energy Assets to Help Optimize Regional Transmission Systems

The proposed project investigates using highly controllable resources, such as energy storage and demand response, located in BPA served distribution networks with the goal of providing technical and economic benefits to BPA such as: 1. Congestion management 2. Equipment upgrade deferrals 3. Increased system reliability, and 4. Assistance in developing a strategy to manage increasing amounts of distributed generation. This project is being pursued due to a timely confluence of several projects already under way. The University of Washington (UW) Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E) funded research project, Energy Positioning: Control and Economics, is developing techniques to optimize use of the energy storage (ES) and demand response (DR) assets to support transmission network operations and determine the economic value of such optimization. The Snohomish PUD is making an investment in ES and DR assets supported by Washington State, which will be managed by an advanced control and optimization system. These assets will provide a valuable real-world proving ground for the UW research and technology to be developed in this project.