Scope A: 1. Conducts a thorough review of the relevant regulatory landscape of demand-side battery storage, including co-located solar and BESS at residential, commercial, and industrial customer levels. To allow installations and develop an incentive program, the City needs to have a full understanding of the laws, regulations, incentives, and permitting processes at the federal, state, and local level pertaining to the City of Newark. 2. Conducts a thorough technical study on the impact of co-located solar and BESS on the utility. The goal is to understand the technical impacts of co-located solar and BESS to determine feasibility and ensure electric infrastructure and operating procedures are sufficient. Report reviews possible co-located solar and BESS installations at the aggregate residential, commercial, and industrial levels, and covers the following objectives: a. Conducts a feeder-level analysis to determine any feeder-level impacts including installation capacity and proper feeder protection. b. Addresses any operational safety aspects of co-located solar and BESS installations to utility personnel. c. If penetration of demand-side co-located solar and BESS can result in deferred infrastructure investments, provide an estimate of savings to the utility. d. Assesses impacts on power quality, specifically for commercial and industrial customers who may have stricter standards for power quality. 3. Recommends incentive structures for each customer level (residential, commercial, and industrial). The study must provide an understanding of relevant incentive structures, public-private partnership models, ownership frameworks, and rate design of other comparable utilities nationwide. It must also consider the cost customers incur when installing co-located solar and BESS. Additionally, it must also consider the economic impact on the utility including lost revenue from solar penetration, deferred investment savings, and any other impacts from the results of task 1 of scope B in incentive considerations. 4. To implement demand-side co-located solar and BESS installations as detailed from the results of the technical, economic, and regulatory reviews, the City must have an understanding of how battery dispatch will be controlled. The report must answer the following questions: a. How will the battery dispatch be handled? Will it be managed by customers or the utility? In both cases, how does the City track whether customers are dispatching according to their contracts and do we need to mandate specific inverter companies to ensure interoperability with software? b. Will this require additional personnel at the City or can it be integrated into the workflow of existing employees? 5. Conducts analysis on resiliency benefits of various levels of penetration of demandside co-located solar and BESS. Report considers impact on reliability indices and economic implications of changes to reliability. 6. Synthesizes findings to support the City of Newark working with Energize Delaware to launch a public-private partnership strategy for installing co-located solar and BESS. Report includes a developed interconnection agreement template with smart inverter requirements to protect grid stability.
