“We are excited to be able to offer a residential community its own microgrid, and provide a resiliency like no other subdivision in the state,” said Wake Electric Vice President of Engineering and Operations Don Bowman. “Through this project, 31 homes are going to have over 36 hours of backup power for both reliability and a local resource when the grid is constrained with capacity.”

Three additional electric co-ops were nominated for awards, which recognize and honor those driving cleantech innovation and deployment.

• Brunswick Electric was nominated for a Grid Innovation Award for Heron’s Nest, a residential microgrid it has developed in Shallotte that supports sustainability, resiliency and reliability for the neighborhood’s 30-plus homes.
• Carteret-Craven Electric Cooperative was nominated for a Cleantech Community Award for its customer‑owned generation program, which provides reserve power generation that can be called on to avoid grid interruptions and blackouts.
• Roanoke Electric Cooperative was nominated for a Grid Innovation Award for its Upgrade to $ave and community solar programs, both of which help members benefit from energy efficiency and sustainability efforts.

Learn more about the Research Triangle Cleantech Cluster and the Cleantech Innovation Awards at researchtrianglecleantech.org.