UK engineering firm Rolls-Royce has commissioned a Microgrid Validation Center at the headquarters of its Rolls-Royce Power Systems subsidiary in Friedrichshafen, Germany.
The center will undertake close-to-reality simulations of microgrids of various dimensions and configurations.
Andreas Schell, CEO of the Rolls-Royce Power Systems, said: “Microgrids are indispensable to the energy turnaround.
“The microgrid has a special significance for our company. It’s a symbol of our evolution from engine manufacturer to provider of integrated solutions.”
Rolls-Royce runs its own microgrid plus photovoltaic system at its Motor and Turbine Union (MTU) Plant 1 in Friedrichshafen.
This system consists of 500 kW photovoltaic panels on the roof of the Validation Center and a neighbouring factory building, gas and diesel-powered gensets, and a 2MW battery.
The company is setting up another proprietary microgrid at its MTU facility in Aiken (South Carolina, US), which will cover the plant’s electrical power demand using regenerative energy sources and make it less dependent on the public grid.
Image: Rolls-Royce inaugurates its new MTU Microgrid Validation Center in Friedrichshafen: Andreas Schell (left), and Michael Theurer, deputy chairman of the FDP parliamentary party in the German Bundestag
