The increasing severity of hurricanes in Adjuntas, Puerto Rico and the prolonged power outages forced communities to turn to more resilient energy solutions.
The microgrid system is run by business owners and residents through a nonprofit called the Community Solar Energy Association of Adjuntas (ACESA), which sells electricity to the commonwealth’s grid through a power purchase agreement. Money saved by not buying power from Puerto Rico’s main power company will support maintaining the microgrid and starting new community projects.
You can read more about the Community-owned solar microgrid project in Adjuntas and the work Casa Pueblo does on their website here
The system includes some ~700 panels mounted on seven buildings in the town’s central plaza and a battery storage system capable of providing up to 187 kilowatts of power. The microgrid can sustain 14 downtown businesses (part of ACESA) for over 3 days without external power or PV production, ensuring they remain operational during extended outages. When PV production is available, the system can self-sustain indefinitely. In total, the microgrid provides enough off-grid electricity to keep these businesses running, serving as critical community hubs in the event of a prolonged power failure.
This is a community-owned and community-conceptualized project. Small, local business owners are at the heart of the project, directly involved in the management and ownership of the project.