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    1. Distributed Energy

    Port of Long Beach starts construction on $12.2M Microgrid for Command and Control Center

    March 14, 2022
    The microgrid, which includes a 300-kW solar array and reduces reliance on diesel generators, also will serve the Jacobsen Pilot Services, which guide cargo vessels at the port
    "Port of Long Beach by Don Ramey Logan.jpg from Wikimedia Commons by D Ramey Logan, CC-BY-SA 3.0"
    1024px Port Of Long Beach By Don Ramey Logan 622f35d78618f

    The Port of Long Beach has started the construction of its $12.2 million microgrid demonstration project, aimed at providing energy resilience to its security center facility – the Joint Command and Control Center (JCCC).

    The microgrid also will serve the Jacobsen Pilot Services, which guide cargo vessels at the port. The project will be partially funded by a $5 million grant from the California Energy Commission.

    The project is scheduled for commissioning in November.

    It will include a 300-kW solar photovoltatic panel array. JCCC staff will be able to leverage the electricity from the microgrid system for uninterrupted work even during a power outage.

    The project is projected to save more than $60,000 annually on electricity costs and deliver an annual output of approximately 520 MWh. The microgrid will also reduce, but not yet eliminate, the use of diesel generators at the JCCC for emergency power.

    “Generating power with a new microgrid will enhance reliability for the Port’s critical security operations during an outage on the utility grid,” Steven Neal, President of the Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners, said. “This project also gives us a glimpse into the future and moves us closer toward using greener energy sources.”

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    Performance data will be analyzed during the first year of operation and compiled in a report. Lessons from this project will be integrated into future marine terminal projects.

    The Port of Long Beach also is working toward widespread deployment of electric charging infrastructure for heavy duty trucks. Two such stations have been installed at the terminal access center with 100 chargers planned at four more sites, according to reports.

    About the Author

    EnergyTech Staff

    Rod Walton is senior editor for EnergyTech.com. He has spent 14 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist.

    Walton formerly was energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World. Later, he spent six years covering the electricity power sector for Pennwell and Clarion Events. He joined Endeavor and EnergyTech in November 2021.

    He can be reached at [email protected]. 

    EnergyTech is focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids.

    Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.