1. Lasqueti Island: False Bay School Solar Energy Project Technical Overview Doug Hopwood May 11, 2016

2. Lasqueti Island, BC 90 km Northwest of Vancouver About 16 km long x 5 km wide Passenger only ferry No hydro grid or natural gas Permanent population about 400

3. Lasqueti Island, BC Interest and expertise in renewable energy Small scale Solar (PV, hot water, and passive thermal) Wind Micro-hydro Wood heat

4. Lasqueti Island, BC Energy conservation Efficient lighting, motors, etc. Switching off Timing of loads Less is more

5. False Bay School Built 1952 2 class-rooms, K - 8, 20 to 25 students Diesel generator Oil heat - converted to propane > 20 years ago Energy UseFuel ConsumptionPriceCostCO 2 (litres/year)($/litre)($/year)(t/year) ElectricityDiesel 16,000 $ 1.50 $ 24,00042.4 HeatPropane 14,000 $ 1.30 $ 18,20021.7 Totals $ 42,20064.1

6. False Bay School Built 1952 2 class-rooms, K - 8, 20 to 25 students Diesel generator Oil heat - converted to propane > 20 years ago Energy UseFuel ConsumptionPriceCostCO 2 (litres/year)($/litre)($/year)(t/year) ElectricityDiesel 16,000 $ 1.50 $ 24,00042.4 HeatPropane 14,000 $ 1.30 $ 18,20021.7 Totals $ 42,20064.1 Electrical system (before) 25 kW Deutz diesel Running 12 hours/day 46 kWh capacity FLA battery 2 4024 Trace inverters Transfer switch (interrupt twice per day) Providing 40 kWh/day to Telus

7. False Bay School

8. False Bay School Solar Energy Project 2009 Head teacher approached community members to help find funding for renewables Students lead multiple fundraising efforts

9. Funding 2009, 2010, 2011 – False Bay School students raised over $2000 to get things started 2009 - “Solar for Schools” grant for solar hot water But - solar hot water showed poor return on investment Solar PV looked better, but we needed $ to collect data and start planning March 2011 - VanCity/Real Estate Foundation Green Building grant – used for monitoring and feasibility November 2011 - Fraser Basin Council funding, and invitation from BC MEM to join “BC Remote Communities Renewable Energy Project” (NRCAN ecoEII funding) Students provided the seed that grew to a Project budget of over $400,000!

10. Early Planning Steps Research PV, wind, micro-hydro, wood gasification Load profile uncertainty Research biomass heat (solid wood, chips, pellets) (Solar thermal heat, heat pump) PV Planning Steps PV Feasibility study, 27 kW (2011) Analysis: HOMER, custom models (power and heat) Financial analysis, 42 kW (2014) Preliminary design for tender, options for 40 kW (2015) Final design (project manager and contractor) 42 kW

11. Summary of PV System Design 42 kW solar PV: 134 Hanwha Solar 72-cell Polycrystalline 315 watts (STC) Arrays: 2 @ 22 modules, (2 strings of 11) 3 @ 30 modules, (3 strings of 10) Racking: Schletter PV-Max concrete ballast, 30° or 42° tilt Solar Inverters: SMA Sunny Boy, 2 @ 7 kW, 3 @ 9kW (“AC-coupled”) Off-grid Inverters: SMA Sunny Island, 4 @ 6 kW Flooded Lead-acid Batteries 132 kWh - 2 strings of 24 cells each, Global-Yuasa 85T-27

12. Diesel Generators 1 - 25 kW 1800 rpm, 3-cyclinder Deutz 1 - 18 kW 1200 rpm, 3-cyclinder Deutz 2000 litre fuel tank Fuel level sensor

19. PV Sizing Considerations Why 42 kW? Cost/benefit, Return on Investment, Payback Available budget Available space Array and string configuration

20. PV Sizing Considerations Why 42 kW? Cost/benefit, Return on Investment, Payback Available budget Available space Array and string configuration

21. PV Sizing Considerations Why 42 kW? Cost/benefit, Return on Investment, Payback Available budget Available space Array and string configuration

22. PV Sizing Considerations Why 42 kW? Cost/benefit, Return on Investment, Payback Available budget Available space Array and string configuration

23. PV Sizing Considerations Why 42 kW? Cost/benefit, Return on Investment, Payback Available budget Available space Array and string configuration

24. Battery Sizing Considerations Why 132 kWh? 50% recommended maximum routine depth of discharge (66 kWh) Loss of capacity over time (about 50 kWh) Night time loads: 14 hours, 2 to 3 kW  42 kWh Need a buffer for cloudy mornings Enough for one overnight cycle 24 hour autonomy would be much more expensive

25. Battery Sizing Considerations Why 132 kWh? 50% recommended maximum routine depth of discharge (66 kWh) Loss of capacity over time (about 50 kWh) Night time loads: 14 hours, 2 to 3 kW  42 kWh Need a buffer for cloudy mornings Enough for one overnight cycle 24 hour autonomy would be much more expensive

26. Monitoring Sunny Portal web-site Hosted by SMA, free with Sunny web-box Go to www.sunnyportal.ca - search “FBS” under “Publicly Available PV Systems”www.sunnyportal.ca Good for PV/battery performance, but nothing on load side Enteliweb Provided by ESC Automation Works through existing building management system Custom dashboards Expensive http://eweb.escautomation.com/enteliweb/Falsebay/graphic

27. PV – Generator Interactions Frequency SMA system uses frequency shift to control solar inverters Can lead to inefficient operation Generator “A”, mechanical governor PV output curtailed to maintain load on generator Generator “B”, electronic governor PV output maintained, generator load can drop off Risk of “reverse power” Needs system to shut off generator under low load

28. PV – Generator Interactions

29. Generator Run Scheduling SMA system can start and stop generators based on time, load, voltage, battery state of charge Can lead to inefficient operation

30. PV – Generator Interactions Generator Run Scheduling SMA system can start and stop generators based on time, load, voltage, battery state of charge Can lead to inefficient operation

31. PV – Generator Interactions Generator Run Scheduling

32. PV – Generator Interactions Generator Run Scheduling SMA system can start and stop generators based on time, load, voltage, battery state of charge Can lead to inefficient operation

33. PV – Generator Interactions

34. Summary - GHG Emissions Reduction

36. Summary - Innovative Project? Planned OutcomesAchieved?  High penetration Solar/Diesel hybridYes  “Smart” controlsI hope so!  Monitoring system – educational & research value I hope so!  Wind or Micro-hydro hybridNo  Community-based Funding ModelNo  Biomass heatNo

37. Summary – Learning Funding delays, tight time-lines Need dedicated personnel, commitment, continuity Hard to find knowledgeable help for high-level system planning The FBS experience is scalable to larger communities Demand management is essential For diesel-dependent remote communities, PV can reduce diesel 60 to 70 percent. Solar/diesel integration needs work