Integrating Front-of-the-Meter Energy Storage with Smart PV Inverters and Solar Forecasting
Integrates front-of-the-meter energy storage with behind-the-meter PV, smart inverters, and solar forecasting to demonstrate value stacking of the system
Electric Power Research Institute, Inc.
Recipient
Palo Alto, CA
Recipient Location
13th
Senate District
23rd
Assembly District
$1,308,554
Amount Spent
Active
Project Status
Project Update
As of December 2025, the front-of-the-meter 125 kW, 500 kWh Li-ion battery energy storage system (BESS) has been installed and commissioned at the Sonoma Valley Unified School District Bus Yard. The microgrid has remote control capability for the recloser, enabling transitions between islanded and grid connected modes. Several rounds of initial commissioning activities, functional testing, and telemetry preparation occurred through November 2025, supported by coordinated efforts among the batery vendor (Kore Power), and the engineering, procurement, and construction contractors (MMR Constructors and Trimark Associates). The system’s architecture includes an integrated microgrid controller, a utility interactive inverter system, and CAISO ready telemetry, all of which will be tested and validated before the system starts participating in CAISO markets in 2026. CAISO documentation filing continues to progress through close coordination between Olivine (wholesale energy market scheduling coordinator) and Trimark Associates, with PG&E Permit to Operate (PTO) approval and CAISO integration targeted in the second quarter of 2026.
The Issue
Front-of-the-meter and community-scale energy storage can benefit the grid and may offer higher value than behind-the-meter batteries, though the exact values, maximization strategies, and integration barriers for front-of-the-meter resources are not yet well understood.
Project Innovation
The project involves the design and installation of a front-of-meter energy storage system with smart photovoltaic (PV) inverters and solar forecasting. The system will participate in the California Independent System Operator's (CAISO) wholesale energy and ancillary services markets. In addition, it will provide backup to the school during planned and unplanned outages. The research will demonstrate a cost-effective and scalable solution that integrates distributed energy resources to address grid needs and identify cost reductions and revenue-generating opportunities for developers and commercial customers. The project will also identify barriers to the integration of front-of-the-meter resources and strategies to overcome these barriers.
Project Goals
Project Benefits
The project will demonstrate an interoperable solution that integrates front-of-the-meter energy storage with smart PV inverters and satellite-based solar forecasting to address grid limitations. The system will participate in CAISO's wholesale energy and ancillary services markets and help maximize the value proposition of the overall project through market participation. In addition, it will provide backup power to the school during planned and unplanned outages. The results will provide strategies for aggregating larger amounts of distributed energy resources on the grid with front-of-the-meter energy storage to support the state's goal of achieving zero-carbon electricity by 2045.
Affordability
This project will demonstrate the wholesale market participation for front-of-the-meter storage, and evaluate revenue streams that can offset the cost of the system and provide energy savings to a facility by reducing daily load.
Reliability
This project will explore several value stream opportunities for front-of-the-meter storage, including critical power services during grid outages. The intent of this type of solution deployed at scale is to provide benefits to the customer and distribution system. In particular, for the local system, benefits may include mitigating adverse PV impacts such as voltage violations.
Key Project Members
Ramakrishnan Ravikumar
Haresh Kamath
Subrecipients
Trimark Associates, Inc.
Match Partners
Electric Power Research Institute, Inc.
Sonoma Valley Unified School District
