The Idaho National Laboratory (INL), a US Department of Energy (DoE) lab, has partnered with distributed energy resources company XENDEE Corporation to develop a platform that can be used in the development of net-zero microgrids.

The Net-Zero Carbon platform will enable the incorporation of various distributed and sustainable energy technologies including solar PV, battery storage, electric vehicle charging systems, hydrokinetic power, hydro storage, small nuclear reactors and combined heat and power systems.

The aim for the development of the platform is to optimise microgrids functionalities whilst ensuring environmental sustainability, cost efficiency and energy security.

The design will enable maximum return on investments for investors and developers, according to a statement.

Today, fossil-fueled power generators make up the majority of microgrid components hence the need to develop the platform.

XENDEE Corporation will provide its microgrid design and operation system for system optimisation, power flow simulation and cloud operations.

The partnership between XENDEE follows the completion of a study by INL which identified some 25 requirements that are vital in developing net-zero microgrids. XENDEE Corporation has been identified as the only company that meet the requirements identified by INL.

Michael Stadler, the CTO of XENDEE Corporation, said: “Net-Zero Carbon Microgrids offer an exceptional solution to large public and private energy consumers, lifting the burden of centralised distribution, ensuring long-term energy security, and specifically addressing greenhouse gases as a priority parameter for technical design.”

Ning Kang, department manager of power and energy systems at INL, said: “With the ever-increasing demands on regional utilities, ageing infrastructure, and rising fuel costs, Microgrids have a unique opportunity to meet the challenges of climate change and contribute to a carbon-free power delivery system without overburdening energy markets and consumers.

“The addition of small nuclear reactor technology can offer a unique zero-carbon solution while also meeting the load requirements of large industrial facilities and military bases.”