Officials from the Japanese Consulate and the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization of Japan (N.E.D.O.) visited Oshawa City Hall on February 19 as part of a wrap up of the international partnership component of their Solar Energy Management System pilot.
Led by Oshawa Power (Oshawa PUC), the five-year pilot project consisted of a unique partnership between the utility, City of Oshawa, Tabuchi Electric, and N.E.D.O., a Japanese governmental organization that promotes research in the renewable energy field.
The $1.2 million initiative involved the participation of 30 homes in Oshawa utilizing solar energy, an advanced smart inverter and a lithium-ion battery to simultaneously produce, store and manage energy from their own home.
The 30 households were each provided with an energy storage system to store solar power for use during peak hours and after sunset. The systems also provided several hours of backup power in the event of an outage. Additionally, the homeowners realized savings of over 50 percent on their electricity bills.
The pilot demonstrated and quantified beneficial climate change adaptation strategies, as well as benefits to both the consumer and the utility such as virtual power plant functions.
Prior to the project kick-off in 2014, a project of this scale and scope had not yet taken place in North America.
The February 19 visit included:
- a closing results forum with officials and staff representing all the project partners and many participating pilot homeowners
- a meet and greet and gift exchange with members of City Council, Oshawa Power, the Japanese Consulate and NEDO
- Oshawa Power presentation of the high-level results during the regular City Council meeting
Detailed results from the pilot will be posted on Oshawa Power’s website in the coming weeks.
Oshawa Power provides safe, reliable and efficient electricity distribution services to over 58,000 customers in Oshawa.
Quotes:
“Oshawa Power is proud to have collaborated with major international partners and the City of Oshawa to bring leading-edge technology to our customers. This award-winning pilot brought international notoriety and roughly $1.2 million dollars of investment to our community,” said Ivano Labricciosa, President & CEO, Oshawa Power. “Through the joint efforts of the partners, we explored new service offerings that promote affordability, reduce environmental impact and increase the resiliency of our power system – all things we know are important to the people of Oshawa.”
“This international partnership and cutting-edge residential solar storage pilot – the first of its kind to launch in North America five years ago – was another great example of Oshawa being on the leading edge of innovation,” said Oshawa Mayor Dan Carter. “We thank Oshawa Power and our partners from Japan, Tabuchi Electric and N.E.D.O. for investing in our city and making advancements in the renewable energy field.”
