Overview and Status of
Distributed Energy Resources
Policy Docket
Jay Griffin, Chief of Policy and Research
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
August 4, 2015
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
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Jay Griffin
Chief of Policy and Research
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
Dr. James “Jay” Griffin is the Chief of Policy and Research at the Hawaii Public Utilities
Commission. He leads the PUC’s team of researchers and economists that support
Commission decision-making with energy policy research and analysis. Joining the PUC
over two years ago through an intergovernmental agreement, Jay is on leave as a faculty
member at the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute (HNEI) which is an independent research
unit at the University of Hawaii supporting the state’s efforts to develop indigenous
renewable energy sources and reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels. While at
HNEI, Jay worked on the research team for several renewable grid integration studies and
led a Department of Energy-funded smart grid demonstration project on Maui.
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
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Hawaii – Becoming World Leader in Solar PV Adoption
Hawaii leads the nation in the penetration of residential rooftop solar PV
systems and as a result, is at the forefront of the integration challenges
associated with high solar PV penetration levels.
At the same time, Hawaii is on track by 2017 to become a world leader in
the utilization of solar PV resources – both distributed and utility-scale –
with installed solar PV capacity penetration levels exceeding 75% of
typical daytime gross system loads likely on several island electric grids.
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Hawaii Electric Systems -- 4 Electric Utilities; 6 Separate Grids
Kauai Island Utility
Cooperative
Maui Electric
34 MW PV (12 MW in development)
System Peak: 72 MW
Customers: 32,700
17%
Maui: 52MW PV / 72MW Wind
System Peak: Maui 190 MW
Lana’i: 1MW PV
System Peak: Lana’i: 5 MW
Moloka’i: 2 MW PV
System Peak: Moloka’i: 5.5 MW
Customers: 68,000
Oʻahu
15%
Hawaiian Electric
283 MW PV / 100 MW Wind /
69 MW WTE
System Peak: 1,144 MW
Customers: 300,000
Molokaʻi
34%
Maui
Lanaʻi
Hawaii Electric Light
52 MW PV / 30 MW Wind /
34 MW Geothermal / 16 MW Hydro
System Peak: 190 MW
Customers: 81,000
Hawaiʻi
47%
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Hawaii’s Distributed Solar PV Growth has Pushed
Interconnection and System Integration Boundaries
Hawaiian Electric Companies
389
400
Cumulative Installed Capacity (MWs)
350
301
300
250
200
171
150
100
71
40
50
0
1.8
2.4
4.7
2005
2006
2007
12
2008
24
2009
5
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
PV output to circuit load. !As a rule
of thumb, the minimum daytime
load is about 50% of the peak,
and the peak in Hawaii typically
happens in the later evening as PV
output is declining. !On Oahu, the
most recent information we
received is that 68 circuits are at
this threshold which is close to 1/3
of the total. !It's a similar story on
Maui and Big Island. !
Growth of Distributed PV has Pushed Interconnection
Boundaries
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Source: Hawaiian Electric Co.
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
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Growth of Distributed PV has Pushed Interconnection
Boundaries
Source: Hawaiian Electric Co.
•
Over last 2 years utility has increased distribution circuit screen levels to interconnect additional PV
•
Aggregate growth has raised system-level integration challenges
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
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Hawaii’s High Renewable Grids are Encountering New
Technical, Economic, and Policy Challenges First
 60% Daytime
Load supplied by
Wind and DG
Source: Maui Electric Co. “Renewable Watch”, August 1, 2015
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
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Hawaii’s High Renewable Grids are Encountering New
Technical, Economic, and Policy Challenges First
Maui, Hawaii Island, and
Kauai regularly > 50%
w/ Oahu to follow soon
CAISO @  23% daytime load
similar to Oahu today
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
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March 31 PUC Orders Address DER Interconnection and
New Customer Options
Interconnection of Energy Storage Systems (Docket No. 2014-0130)
• Storage systems will be reviewed for safety and reliability
• Resolution of further technical issues moved to DER docket
Distributed Energy Resources Policy Docket (Docket No. 2014-0192)
• Established to investigate technical, economic, and policy issues
• Opening order highlighted 3 key objectives:
1) Clear interconnection backlog
2) Enable DER market growth
3) Create new DER market choices
• Included Staff Paper and Proposal
• Continues work started by stakeholders in the Reliability Standards
Working Group (RSWG)
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
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Overview of Staff Report and Proposal
• Focused discussion and collaboration among parties will
resolve high priority issues more quickly
• Document divided into 3 sections:
1) Overview of Recent Trends in Hawaii Solar PV Market
2) Near-Term Technical and Economic Challenges and Proposed
Solutions for the Evolution of Hawaii’s DER Market
3) Proposed DER Policy Docket Issues and Work Scope
• Summarizes near-term integration challenges
• Includes DER Advanced Technology Roadmap
• Proposes work scope for near-term and mid-term solutions
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
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Staff Paper Summarizes DER Priority Technical
Challenges
Examples of Technical Integration Challenges
Steady State Operations
Systemlevel
Circuitlevel
Contingency Events
Over-generation and increasing
variability in generation resulting in:
 Curtailment of other renewable
generation
 Frequency regulation and ramping
challenges for central generation
Behavior of aggregate DER fleet may
exacerbate grid instability during
emergencies:
 Need grid-supportive frequency
and voltage trip and ride through
settings
Over-generation resulting in:
 Approaching or exceeding
distribution system equipment
capacity limitations
Behavior of DER systems during
circuit-level contingencies may result
in:
 Unintentional islanding
 Temporary load rejection
overvoltage
Source: Table 2, Staff Report and Proposal, Docket No. 2014-0192, March 31, 2015
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
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Proposed Market Options to Address Integration
Challenges
Customer
Self-Supply
Option
Customer
DER Development
Options
Non-participant
customers held
harmless, or benefit,
from both customer
solar PV development
options
Customer choice -non-export option
to serve customer
energy
requirements
Customer
Grid-Supply
Option
Grid power supply –
export option to
supply wholesale
energy
Source: Staff Report and Proposal, Docket No. 2014-0192, March 31, 2015
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
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Next Steps in DER Docket
• Phase 1: Collaborative process with focus on clearing
interconnection backlog, enabling continued DER market
growth, and creating new DER market choices
• Parties filed Final Statements of Position – June 29, 2015
• Resolution of Phase 1 issues and Phase 2 scope currently
under Commission consideration
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
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Mahalo!
Please send any questions to me at
james.p.griffin@hawaii.gov
Hawaii Public Utilities Commission
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