Blue Lake Rancheria Microgrid

Creating environments that care

A century-old Native American reservation in Northern California, took control of its energy by launching a solar power-based microgrid. Subsequently, the community proved its resilience for the second time: During extensive wildfire-related outages in October 2019 and the huge disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic Blue Lake Rancheria turned out to be a power island in the storm.

Reference: Blue Lake Rancheria

Location: Blue Lake, CA, USA

Project focus: Microgrid, solar power

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Project benefits

0 k $

Energy savings per year

200

Zero net energy in island mode

0 t

CO₂ savings per year

When you control your energy, you control your future.

Jana Ganion

Project insights

Technology

Microgrids contain all the elements of complex energy systems. They maintain the balance between generation and consumption, and they can operate on grid or in island mode. The Blue Lake Rancheria microgrid incorporates a Spectrum Power Microgrid Controller from Siemens, a solar array with 420 kW AC combined with a 2,000 kWh lithium-ion battery storage.

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Solar array

Maximum efficiency in controlling photovoltaic power plants.

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Li-ion battery storage

Creating buffer reserves of electricity with large- and small-scale battery storage technology.

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Spectrum Power Microgrid Management System (MGMS)

Managing and optimizing the complete microgrid for significantly decreased operating expenses.

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Article: A power island in the storm
Energy resilience in uncertain times – how Blue Lake Rancheria masters the challenges of today.
Article: Amid rolling blackouts in California, a microgrid proves its resilience
By: Jana Ganion, Sustainability and Government Affairs Director, Blue Lake Rancheria

The first step in resilience is deciding to do it.

David Narum | Project Manager | Blue Lake Rancheria

We really are prepared for just about anything. And that Siemens technology helps us do this.

Jana Ganion | Sustainability and Government Affairs Director | Blue Lake Rancheria

Why Siemens?

Energy intelligence

Energy intelligence delivers increased efficiency through predictive planning. This enables the maintenance and optimization of the energy grid in the most secure and sustainable way. Our digital solutions help you to harness the potential of data using of the latest technologies in the Internet of Energy, such as artificial intelligence and self-learning algorithms.

IT/OT integration

Our path to the Internet of Energy is a deep, cross-functional, and proactive collaborative approach that combines the respective intellectual power, know-how, and experience of both IT and OT teams. IT/OT integration not only enables secure optimization of operational data – it also leads to transparency, capability and better time- and money-saving decisions.

Global domain know-how

Co-creation using Siemens’ domain knowledge and our clients’ expertise allows for a maximum of customer proximity. Together we shape grids that are cost-efficient, safe, reliable and flexible.

Partnership

Siemens has a long history of building trust-based partnerships with countless customers around the world. Our approach: we offer unmatched know-how, which encompasses all energy topics, to help you achieve your business goals in the most sustainable way.

Professional consulting

We help you knock down barriers to your success

Wherever you are in your energy transition journey, we help you add mission-critical capabilities for decoding and shaping the future of your grid. Talk to our experts to explore which approach best supports your goals.

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References

Driving zero fossil fuels for Galápagos

A typical application for the microgrid use case “Island”
Creating a reliable, safe, and sustainable power supply for Isabela Island
A hybrid power plant designed to run completely carbon-neutral based on solar energy and biodiesel with a battery storage system

A unique spirit of partnership

A typical application for the microgrid use case “Campus”
The College of Applied Arts in Technology is on an ambitious journey to becoming a sustainable institution of the future
With Siemens, it found a partner to help educate, operate, collaborate, and innovate for a clean energy future

IREN2

A typical application for the microgrid use case “Municipality”
Ingenuity meets pioneering spirit: The first microgrid test of its kind outside the laboratory
The village set up stable grids with a functioning electricity supply from a range of renewable sources

Distributed energy system planning

Decentralized energy systems and microgrids are increasingly recognized as a key concept for future energy supply systems, complementing conventional centralized energy supply.

Microgrid Control – a SICAM application

Microgrid Control – a SICAM application ensures the reliable control and monitoring of microgrids, protects an independent power supply against blackouts and balances out grid fluctuations as well as fluctuations in power consumption.