USVI Virtual Power Plant Test Delivers About 1.5 MW From 120 Battery Sites

A network of residential battery systems spread across St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John collectively discharged approximately 1.5 megawatts of power during a 30-minute test, reducing the amount of electricity WAPA’s Richmond and Randolph Harley power plants had to provide and demonstrating how privately owned batteries could be called upon as a coordinated grid resource. The Virgin Islands Energy Office conducted the inaugural test of its VIBES 2.0 Virtual Power Plant in coordination with Tesla Energy and the V.I. Water and Power Authority. VIEO said 120 sites participated, with their batteries simultaneously feeding electricity onto the St. Croix and St. Thomas-St. John grids. The Energy Office’s press-release headline described the test as delivering 1 MW, while the body of the release states that approximately 1.5 MW was discharged from the participating sites. During the half-hour test, VIEO said the virtual power plant produced a measurable decrease in demand on WAPA’s Richmo...