Building a blueprint for rural energy resilience
Researchers, engineers and community leaders met at the future site of the Hopi Nation Community Solar Project on the Hopi Reservation. The project will adapt existing infrastructure to support a hybrid solar microgrid to provide energy to the community. Image courtesy Kristen Parrish
For rural and remote communities, like the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona, unreliable energy is a persistent challenge. The Turquoise Trail administration campus on the reservation currently relies on backup generators to keep essential offices and community buildings operational for a few hours each day, prompting the community to seek a novel solution.
Researchers from the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University are collaborating with the Hopi Utilities Corporation, or HUC, and BoxPower, a microgrid development company, to design a solar-powered hybrid microgrid that serves as a replicable blueprint for rural energy resilience.
Backed by a $9 million grant from the Energy Improvements in Rural or Remote Areas program through the U.S. Department of Energy, the Hopi Tribe Community Solar Project will adapt the existing fossil fuel-based infrastructure to deliver sustainable and reliable power.
Kristen Parrish, the project lead and a professor of construction management and engineering in the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, part of the Fulton Schools, says the energy challenges faced by the Hopi community mirror those found in small towns across the country.
“It’s not a unique problem in rural America to be at the edge of the power grid or on the fringes of two jurisdictions,” Parrish says. “This project outlines the blueprint to help those communities achieve reliable and resilient energy.”
Reflecting remote challenges
The Hopi site checks all the boxes for a model microgrid site: a clear need, an accessible location with space for solar infrastructure and a longstanding relationship with ASU.
The microgrid will power 15 buildings at the Turquoise Trail Municipal Complex, or TTMC, which was built to provide essential services to the community. However, due to inconsistent access to electricity, the complex has been operating at minimal capacity.
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Chairman Timothy Nuvangyaoma says that some of the tribe’s resources were disrupted due to COVID-19, and that the facilities have had to make do with limited power supply.
“Having energy stability gives the program a stable worksite that essentially turns into better services for our community,” Nuvangyaoma says.
Fletcher Wilkinson, the energy manager at HUC, says the utility challenges faced by the Hopi are far from unique.
“For the last two years, we’ve been able to run generators intermittently, powering a few buildings for about 10 hours a day,” Wilkinson says. “For the first time, the microgrid will give the whole campus 24-hour power.”
Designing a microgrid in a rural, multi-jurisdictional area presents several engineering hurdles. However, BoxPower Senior Project Manager Sanya Detweiler says the obstacles highlight TTMC as a model location to display the value of a microgrid.
“Much of rural America is poorly served by the traditional power grid and is seeking the energy sovereignty that a microgrid can provide,” Detweiler says. “We’re setting the precedent and establishing a playbook for other communities to replicate.”
Supplying energy sovereignty
The system will combine a 1.25-megawatt solar panel array, battery energy storage and existing diesel generators to ensure 24/7 power.
“Having the help of an entity like ASU really unlocks success,” Wilkinson says. “The brainpower, resources and initiative that this collaboration has sparked will have visible results within the community for years to come.”
Researchers from ASU’s Laboratory for Energy And Power Solutions, or LEAPS, have been performing optimal sizing analyses to reliably meet energy demands and ensure long-term performance.
James Nelson, director of technology and innovation at LEAPS, says it’s not just a matter of turning on the power, but making sure the right systems and people are in place to sustain it for years to come.
“Our goal is to help HUC and the Hopi Tribe reach their energy goals of sovereignty, reliability and sustainability with scalable processes,” Nelson says. “We’re trying to demonstrate how the solution of hybridizing and updating an older, traditional fossil fuel-based type of system can work and make that process repeatable for other sites — whether on tribal, domestic or international land.”
The project reflects ASU’s commitment to use-inspired research that transcends the lab and serves stakeholders directly.
Powering the path for others
Whether faced with wildfires, high utility costs or diesel dependence, microgrids offer rural communities a path toward energy resilience.
“At its very core, this is an opportunity for the Hopi Tribe to achieve energy sovereignty,” Wilkinson says. “This is power generation that we own, rather than relying on outside entities.”
The TTMC microgrid is expected to open opportunities for autonomous expansion and development within the tribe, allowing them to build more housing and potentially export electricity. While ASU is currently serving as a technical and administrative backbone, HUC will operate, maintain and own the microgrid upon completion.
“We at ASU strive to support local partnerships and conduct use-inspired, meaningful research,” Parrish says. “This project aligned with all of those values. We get to serve our tribal partners as we establish a high-impact blueprint for all of rural America.”
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