Concerto™ platform to support grid reliability and help transform Dominion Energy Virginia’s distribution grid by integrating the growing portfolio of distributed energy resources
Generac Grid Services, a subsidiary of Generac Power Systems (NYSE: GNRC), a leading designer and manufacturer of energy technology solutions and other power products, today announced that it has been selected by Dominion Energy Virginia to provide the utility’s single, comprehensive distributed energy resource management system (DERMS) solution using its Concerto™ platform. Dominion Energy Virginia will be able to use Concerto to control distributed energy resources (DERs) for grid reliability purposes, in addition to creating value for consumers by enabling approved DERs to participate in existing programs or through the PJM wholesale electricity market.
The Concerto platform can be used to access and manage both current and planned DERs, including smaller consumer-owned behind-the-meter devices, such as residential solar arrays, battery storage, smart thermostats, electric vehicles, and other capacity resources. The platform will also help Dominion Energy manage large front-of-meter devices, such as solar and energy storage. Concerto will help unify Dominion Energy Virginia’s growing fleet of distributed energy resources via direct connection to its utility control systems, creating a simple, reliable, and unified DER management experience. This investment comes as part of the company’s larger Grid Transformation Plan.
“Generac Grid Services is pleased to support Dominion Energy with this important project,” said James Carr, president of Generac Grid Services. “This is a landmark, enterprise-level DERMS deployment that will aggregate many different types of DERs, integrate to utility systems and be used for both simple and advanced distribution optimization use cases.”
The Concerto platform will be integrated to Dominion Energy’s Advanced Distribution Management System and will process information, such as weather data, network conditions, demand forecasts and utility customer requirements, to recognize distribution system issues and rapidly dispatch the appropriate mix of DERs to respond. Dominion Energy Virginia can also leverage the Concerto platform to balance supply and demand on its grid through the provision of advanced-use cases, including realtime voltage support at specific locations.
“Concerto will allow us to monitor, control, and optimize increasing levels of DERs on our system to maintain the safe and reliable grid that our customers expect,” stated Robbie Wright, vice president – Grid & Technical Solutions, Dominion Energy. “This is a key component of our efforts to modernize the electric grid, and we’re looking forward to its implementation.”
The upcoming implementation of FERC Order 2222 rules allow DERs to compete on a level playing field in capacity, energy and ancillary service markets. Under the Concerto platform, Dominion Energy will enable customers with approved DERs to participate in the PJM wholesale electricity market, a regional transmission organization that coordinates the movement of electricity between 13 states and the District of Colombia. The Concerto platform works with a variety of vendors, highlighting Generac Grid Services’ dedication to a robust and future-proof ecosystem of distributed energy resources that allows Dominion Energy to maximize the value and choice they can offer to their customers for distributed energy initiatives.
About Generac Grid Services
Generac Grid Services is a subsidiary of Generac Power Systems (NYSE: GNRC), a leading designer and manufacturer of energy technology solutions and other power products. Generac Grid Services is working to change the way the world generates and uses electricity. From turnkey solar + storage solutions, to backup generators, additional distributed energy resources and virtual power plant software, Generac Grid Services is helping to accelerate the world’s transition to a cleaner, more reliable power grid. Via the company’s energy-balancing platform, power generation and storage products that might otherwise sit idle are now able to be dispatched and orchestrated as part of a distributed energy solution, thereby generating value for the home or business owner, while also delivering value to the energy grid.