Multilab Energy Planning Support for Puerto Rico

Support for disaster preparedness by enhancing usability of the Electrical Grid Resilience and Assessment System and the Recovery Simulator Analysis tool

• Siting opportunities for new generation projects
• Innovative programs to improve reliability and resilience
• Supply chain and infrastructure analysis
• Integrated transmission and distribution planning
• Impacts and mitigation strategies for high penetration of distributed generation

• Assessment of Puerto Rico Integrated Resilience Plan
• Support implementation of Community Development Block Grant funding for the grid

Key activities from October 2018 to December 2019 included:

• Developing solar resource data for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands through the National Solar Radiation Database
  
  
• Developing and executing an educational module that provides analytical support to stakeholders on best practices for interconnection of distributed energy resources and IEEE 1547 standard
  
  
• Delivering Puerto Rico-specific SAM improvements to provide foundational solar profiles for production cost modeling and enable stakeholders to perform detailed cost-benefit analysis of energy systems, accounting for resiliency and ancillary service functionality
  
  
• Providing support for use of the Engage™ tool as a convening hub for collaborative, user-driven capacity expansion planning in Puerto Rico, including energy system models, scenarios, and local capacity-building
  
  

• Creating a set of pre-storm checklists for owners and operators of solar installations to help Puerto Rico and similar communities secure their assets in advance of severe weather. Designed with stakeholder input, the resource includes separate checklists for utility-scale ground-mounted PV systems, distributed roof-mounted PV systems, and distributed ground-mounted PV systems.

  In Spanish: Preparación de sistemas solares, incluyendo listas de verificación de refuerzo de tormentas individuales para sistemas fotovoltaicos montados en el suelo, sistemas fotovoltaicos montados en el techo, y sistemas fotovoltaicos de servicios públicos montados en el suelo.
  
  

• Supporting Puerto Rico through effective information dissemination to stakeholders in the form of workshops and other resources and providing responsive capacity development in the form of on-demand technical assistance.

Between October 2017 and September 2018, NREL provided Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority "… recommendations for a new framework of interconnection standards to accelerate the integration of utility-scale, transmission-connected renewable electrical generation and energy storage that ensure cross-technology compatibility and enable high deployment levels without compromising grid reliably, safety, or security." (Sources: Considerations for Distributed Energy Resource Integration in Puerto Rico and Interconnection Requirements for Renewable Generation and Energy Storage in Island Systems: Puerto Rico Example)

Assessing the Solar Photovoltaic Potential in Puerto Rican Brownfields and Reservoirs: Analysis and Modeling, NREL Presentation (2024)

In Spanish: Evaluación del Potencial Solar Fotovoltaico en Brownfields y Embalses de Puerto Rico: Análisis y Modelaje, NREL Presentation (2024)

Assessing the Solar Photovoltaic Potential in Puerto Rican Brownfields and Reservoirs: Detailed Analysis and Annexes, NREL Presentation (2024)

PR100 Final Results Public Event Slides, NREL Presentation (2024)

In Spanish: Resultados Finales del Estudio PR100, NREL Presentation (2024)

PR100 Final Results Webinar, YouTube (2024)

In Spanish: Resultados Finales del Estudio PR100 Webinar, YouTube (2024)

Community Energy and Water Resilience Installations Training for Program Managers/Installer, NREL Webinar on YouTube (2022)

Community Energy and Water Resilience Installations Training for Homeowners, NREL Webinar on YouTube (2022)

In Spanish: Capacitación del Programa Para Propietarios de Viviendas en Español, NREL Webinar on YouTube (2022)

Workshop on Energy Planning Resources for Puerto Rico, NREL Presentation (2019)

Solar Resource and Technical Potential Modeling, NREL Presentation (2019)

Puerto Rico Grid Resilience and Transitions to 100% Renewable Energy Study (PR100): Summary Report, NREL Technical Report 2024

In Spanish: Estudio de Resiliencia de la Red Electrica de Puerto Rico y Transiciones a Energia 100% Renovable (PR100): Informe Resumido, NREL Technical Report (2024)

Puerto Rico Grid Resilience and Transitions to 100% Renewable Energy Study (PR100) Final Report, NREL Technical Report (2024) 

In Spanish: Estudio de Resiliencia de la Red Eléctrica de Puerto Rico y Transiciones a Energía 100% Renovable (PR100) Informe Final, NREL Technical Report (2024)

Wind Energy Costs in Puerto Rico Through 2035, NREL Technical Report (2022)

Quantifying the Solar Energy Resource for Puerto Rico, NREL Technical Report (2021)

Considerations for Distributed Energy Resource Integration in Puerto Rico, NREL Technical Report (2021)

Puerto Rico Energy Planning Resources Workshop Report, NREL Technical Report (2019)

Valuing Resilience Benefits of Microgrids for an Interconnected Island Distribution System, Electronics (2022)

These tools are publicly available and don't require technical modeling skills.

Building Energy Optimization Tool – Used to evaluate residential building designs and identify cost-optimal efficiency packages at various levels of whole-house energy savings along the path to zero net energy.

Community Solar Scenario Tool – Provides a "first cut" analysis of different community or shared solar program options.

Engage™ – Modeling tool that makes cross-sectoral energy system planning and simulation easier and more accessible.

Jobs and Economic Development Impact Models – User-friendly tools that estimate economic impacts of constructing and operating power generation and biofuel plants at local and state levels.

National Solar Radiation Database– A collection of meteorological and solar irradiance data sets for the U.S. and a growing list of international locations.

Puerto Rico Demand Response Impact and Forecast Tool – A spreadsheet tool to estimate potential impacts to the load profile of demand response, energy efficiency, distributed energy generation, and energy storage in Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico Energy Efficiency Scenario Analysis Tool – An energy efficiency scenario analysis spreadsheet tool.

PVWatts Calculator – A calculator that estimates the energy production and cost of energy of grid-connected photovoltaic energy systems throughout the world. A Spanish version is available; follow the link and click "Español" in the top navigation bar.

REopt Lite – A decision-support tool used to optimize energy systems for buildings, campuses, communities, and microgrids.

ResStock – Performs large-scale residential energy analysis by combining public and private data sources, statistical sampling, detailed sub-hourly building simulations, and high-performance computing to help users identify which home improvements save the most energy and money.

System Advisor Model – A free computer program that calculates an energy system's hourly energy output over a single year, and the cost of energy over the life of the project. We updated the System Advisor Model (SAM) with mini-grid capabilities relevant to Puerto Rico systems and developed Spanish versions of the following SAM resources:

Introducción a SAM (Modelo para Asesoría de Sistemas) en YouTube

Guía de introducción del SAM BORRADOR

SAM template file.

These tools require some technical modeling skills or are used by NREL researchers to conduct modeling and analysis with and for external partners:

Flexible Energy Scheduling Tool for Integrating Variable Generation – A multiple-timescale, interconnected simulation tool that includes security-constrained unit commitment, security-constrained economic dispatch, and automatic generation control sub-models.

Energy Efficiency Assessment for a Microgrid in the Community of Castañer, Puerto Rico NREL Technical Report (2022)

Puerto Rico Energy Snapshot, DOE Fact Sheet (2020)

Puerto Rico Low-to-Moderate Income Rooftop PV and Solar Savings Potential, NREL Presentation (2020)

Renewable Electricity Technologies to Increase the Resilience of the Food Supply System in Puerto Rico, U.S. Department of Agriculture (2020)

Energy Resilience Assessment for Culebra, Puerto Rico, NREL Strategic Partnership Project Report (2019)

Puerto Rico Electricity Grid Recovery: Better Information and Enhanced Coordination Is Needed to Address Challenges, U.S. Government Accountability Office (2019)

Energy Resilience Solutions for the Puerto Rico Grid, DOE Final Report (2018)

Solar Photovoltaic Systems in Hurricanes and Other Severe Weather, DOE Fact Sheet (2018)

Analysis of Microgrid Locations Benefitting Community Resilience for Puerto Rico, Sandia National Laboratories Report (2018)

Mitigation Assessment Team Report: Hurricanes Irma and Maria in Puerto Rico, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency (2018)

The following resources were not funded by and are not affiliated with DOE or its national laboratories but are relevant to Puerto Rico energy system planning, recovery, and resilience.

FEMA Must Provide Additional Technical Assistance To Support the Timely Rebuilding of Puerto Rico's Electrical Grid, Department of Homeland Security (2025)

Ruta Energetica, Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico

Final Resolution and Order on the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority's Integrated Resource Plan, Puerto Rico Energy Bureau (2020)

Transformation and Innovation in the Wake of Devastation: An Economic and Disaster Recovery Plan for Puerto Rico, Central Office of Recovery, Reconstruction, and Resiliency (2018)