Energy Office Completes First Day Care Solar Microgrid, Opens RFP for Five More Sites Territorywide

The V.I. Energy Office has completed the first solar and battery microgrid installation under the Community Electrical Innovation Program at a St. Croix day care, while also issuing a request for proposals for five additional day care and Head Start sites across the territory. The program, funded through the Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority, is intended to strengthen essential community services through solar and battery microgrids that can keep critical facilities operating during power outages while reducing monthly energy costs. According to the Energy Office, the Community Electrical Innovation Program aligns with the Bryan/Roach administration’s renewable energy and grid resilience strategy by reducing the territory’s exposure to imported fuel costs and grid disruptions. The first completed CEI-funded installation is at Happy Faces II, a St. Croix day care that provides childcare services to working families in the U.S. Virgin Islands. The system was installed and comm...