Presentation from the EPRI-Sandia Symposium on Secure and Resilient Microgrids: Modeling Microgrids with HOMER: Capabilities and Benefits in the U.S. Grid-Connected Market, presented by John Glassmire, HOMER Energy, Baltimore, MD, August 29-31, 2016.

1. Optimizing Clean Power Everywhere
1790 30th St, Suite 100, Boulder, Colorado 80301, USA
http://www.homerenergy.com ● +1-720-565-4046
Modeling Microgrids
with HOMER®:
Capabilities and
Benefits in the U.S.
Grid-Connected Market
John Glassmire
Director of Energy Engineering
john@homerenergy.com

2. HOMER Energy
• NREL: 1992-2009
• Original developers now at HOMER Energy
• 160,000+ users in 193 countries
• HOMER growth follows microgrid industry
1,600+ new signups each month

3. Software: The HOMER® Software is the global standard for microgrid
economic design optimization
Education and Training: Building capacity for designing hybrid renewable
systems
Consulting: Advising on microgrid design, project development, and
markets
Market Access: Helping investors, people, and suppliers connect with
projects and partners
Overview of what we do

4. HOMER Software
• HOMER Pro is the industry standard for
rapid assessment of least cost solutions for
clean, reliable, distributed power
– Conventional resources
– Renewable resources
– Neighboring grid connections
– Storage
– Load Management

5. HOMER Software
• The only major commercial tool focused on
microgrid design optimization

6. HOMER Software History
• 1993 Village Power
– Internal NREL use
• 1998 Version 1.0
– Publicly available application
• 2001 Version 2.0
– Grid-connected microgrids, CHP
• 2009 HOMER Energy
– Commercial license
• 2013 to today HOMER Pro
– Completely redesigned UI
– HOMER Optimizer™
– Grid reliability modeling
– All components as library
– Enhanced storage modeling
– Advanced grid-storage modeling
– Multi-year modeling and cost escalation
– Controllers, New dispatch options, MATLAB Link & Custom SDK

7. Distributed, alternative
HOMER bridges different worlds
Centralized, traditional
HOMER
Model
Technical Economic
HOMER is a communication tool
Renewable advocates
Utility operators
Power Engineers Financiers

8. 1. Grid-Tied Resilience
HOMER provides a key resource in the growing hybrid energy markets,
helping design distributed solutions for reliability.
2. CO2 reduction
HOMER helps customers and communities plan low cost options to
meet environmental goals.
3. Backup for unreliable grids
HOMER helps provide clean, quiet, and reliable power where it is not
available.
4. Remote systems
Island/Islanded Microgrids
Energy Access with Mini-grids
Remote Projects and facilities
Market applications
Our Software is used to design microgrids from 3 kW – 300 MW

9. Who uses HOMER?

10. A few users of HOMER Pro

11. What others say about us
“We spent a lot of money developing our own model, but threw it away
because everyone kept asking for our HOMER results.”
Bruce Levy, CEO, TDX Power - USA
“Everybody I know who is working with HOMER is amazed”
Michael Tittmann, Tittmann Solar GmbH, Germany
“You guys have created a very powerful tool - I’m new to the Microgrid
world - so HOMER is a great help. I recommend Homer to everyone I
meet!”
Steve B – Ontario, Canada
“HOMER has become a staple in our program's integrated energy
planning course”
Martin Obermaier, Energy Planning Program - COPPE/UFRJ, Brazil

12. If you’ve seen one microgrid….
you’ve seen one microgrid!
The microgrid challenge

13. What is best?
• Depends on the application
–Resources
–Loads
–Equipment prices
–Equipment performance
• A confused mind says “No!”
• HOMER fits the pieces together

14. Microgrid design cycle
Collect data
Analyze
Evaluate
Improve
There are many different design cycles we could choose. This is a simple one.

15. Microgrid design process
Early-stage design
Lots of options
Quick, low-cost analysis
Easy to change designs
Goals not firm
Late-stage design
Designs are very detailed
Formal vendor quotes
Design changes hard/expensive
Good understanding of benefits
T&D/wiring, power flow, transient
Chosen
design
Starting
design
Analyze
Improve
Collect
data
Evaluate
Continuous refinement of the project design
HOMER

16. Considerations in MG modelling
• Early design is important
– Eliminate bad options to save $$$
– Clarify goals and benefits
• The model is important
– No need to re-invent the wheel!
– Tested models important for bankability
• Need to consider reliability
– MGs require chronological modeling
– Needs vary: design optimization, power flow, transient analysis
• Collecting data has a cost
– Use the data you’ve got
– Improving the data is a choice
• Dispatch & control affects the economics
– Need a platform that can quickly compare dispatches
• The world is uncertain
– Use sensitivity analysis to understand risk
– Good early design prevents major changes during late design
Let’s build a
slow, expensive,
complicated
model in Excel!

17. Why use HOMER?
• Time-tested
– HOMER software in use for more than 2 decades
• Reliable
– Chronological simulation underpins all results
• Commercially supported
– Easy to obtain
– Strong user support
• Usability is part of our design process
– Friendly user-interface
• Merges the technical & economic
– Balances critical factors for making microgrid design decisions
• Quick design optimization results
– Simulate thousands of options in minutes
• Uses the available data to find the optimal design
– “Use the data you have”
– Identify what data is important
– Flexible data inputs to support evolving data
• Extensive reporting and outputs
– Rapid reports, plots, graphics
• Infinitely customizable (as complex as you need!)
– Standard & custom dispatches, Millions of possible designs
– Can use MATLAB Link and SDK to test different dispatch algorithms
• Supports from early (conceptual, pre-feasibility) to late-stage (engineering design)
– Understand benefits before committing significant time & money

18. Some sample HOMER analyses
• NY Smart grid
• Homewood Ski Resort CHP/PV feasibility study
• Solar+Storage for California wineries
• IRENA Innovation Outlook: Renewable Mini-grids
(pending publication)
• Massachusetts DOER Community Clean Energy
Resiliency Initiative
• Fort Bragg Analysis of Generation Alternatives
• Microgrid Design for Emergency Services in San
Diego

19. http://homerenergy.com/events/economics-of-grid-defection-webinar.html
What if customers cut the wire?

20. Customers should not cut the wire
How microgrids can benefit customers and utilities

21. How can you get involved?
• HOMER Demo Workshop this Wednesday
– Morning session, August 31
– “Techno-economic modeling of grid-connected
microgrids”
• HOMER International Microgrid Conference
– 4th Annual
– New York, New York
– November 7th and 8th, 2016

22. Thank you!
John Glassmire
Director of Energy Engineering
HOMER Energy
1790 30th St. Suite 100
Boulder, CO 80301 USA
Office: +1-720-565-4046
john@homerenergy.com
Download HOMER Pro at
www.homerenergy.com