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Microgrid Technology and Demonstration Center

Current status, energy mix, organizations, suppliers, equipment, controls, reported specifications, and project updates—with source-level citations.

CoverageDetailed public record
Named organizations10
System facts21
Sources reviewed9
Evidence reviewed2026-07-20

This is Oncor's System Operating Services Facility (SOSF) microgrid and its Technology Demonstration and Education Center in Lancaster, Texas. It is a working utility testbed—not merely an exhibit—built as four independently islandable but mutually connectable zones. The 2015 installation combines approximately 106 kW of PV, five fuel-fired generators totaling about 670 kW, and two battery systems totaling 225 kW/425 kWh, with S&C switching/protection and Schneider control software.

Research status
Operational in March 2015 after a nine-month design/build effort. North Central Texas Council of Governments still described it as a successful operating project in 2022, and S&C continues to present it as a proven microgrid reference. No recent Oncor publication disclosed annual availability, generation mix, fuel consumption, battery state of health, or major replacements, so continued showcase/reference status is clearer than 2026 component condition.
Historical classification
Commercial
Reported capacity
See component specifications
Coordinates
32.59208, -96.75611
Evidence note: “Every company” cannot be proven from public material alone. This page lists every organization found in the recovered record and reviewed sources, preserves unknown roles, and explicitly marks undisclosed controller or equipment details.
Report missing evidenceResearch methodology

Project delivery

Who was involved in Microgrid Technology and Demonstration Center?

10 publicly identified organizations. Where a recovered source named a participant without explaining its work, the role remains explicitly unspecified.

Organization

Axium Solar

Supplied/installed the 104 kW parking-canopy and 2 kW ground-mounted PV systems. [4]

Organization

Caterpillar

Manufacturer of three diesel generator sets totaling 560 kW. [4]

Organization

Cummins

Manufacturer of the 45 kW propane reciprocating generator. [4]

Organization

Horizon Power Systems / Capstone

Horizon supplied the propane-fired Capstone C65 microturbine package. [4][6]

Organization

Oncor

Publicly named participant; role not specified in the recovered record [1]

Organization

Oncor Electric Delivery

Owner, funder, host, and operator of the SOSF microgrid and demonstration center. [4][2]

Organization

S&C

Publicly named participant; role not specified in the recovered record [1]

Organization

S&C Electric Company

Microgrid engineering/integration partner; supplied switching, protection, storage, and system reconfiguration equipment. [2][5]

Organization

Schneider Electric

Supplied the microgrid controller, load-preservation and demand-side software, power monitoring, and building/DER coordination. [2][3]

Organization

Tesla

Supplied the principal lithium-ion Powerpack battery system. [4]

System evidence

Energy mix, capacity, and specifications

Values can describe different project phases, generation sources, storage systems, or other components. Source citations are attached to each figure so discrepancies remain visible.

Storage
NA [1]
Architecture
Four autonomous microgrids—telecommunications, control center, and two less-critical facility zones—that can island independently or operate as a combined system; nine DER sources when individual generators, PV arrays, and storage systems are counted. [2][4]
Photovoltaics
106 kW total: 104 kW parking-canopy array plus a 2 kW ground-mounted array. The older 200 kW value in some directories is not supported by the detailed as-built account. [4]
Fuel-fired generation
Approximately 670 kW: 2 x 175 kW Caterpillar diesel, 1 x 210 kW Caterpillar diesel, 1 x 45 kW Cummins propane reciprocating generator, and 1 x 65 kW propane Capstone microturbine. [4][6]
Battery storage
225 kW/425 kWh total nameplate: 200 kW/400 kWh Tesla lithium-ion Powerpack and 25 kW/25 kWh S&C PureWave CES. [4]
Island capability
About 989 kW of peak DER output for roughly two hours; approximately 660 kW can be sustained while fuel remains available. These totals reflect practical configuration/rounding and should not be recomputed as an annual energy mix. [4]
Schedule
S&C and Schneider engaged June 2014, groundbreaking September 2014, operational March 2015. [4]

Controls and hardware

Equipment and controller details

Manufacturer and model are shown only when a source names them. Generic descriptions are not converted into guessed product assignments.

01

Diesel generators

Caterpillar

Two 175 kW sets and one 210 kW set. [4]

02

Propane generator

Cummins

45 kW reciprocating engine-generator. [4]

03

Propane microturbine

Capstone — C65

65 kW package supplied through Horizon Power Systems. [4][6]

04

Battery energy storage

Tesla — Powerpack

200 kW/400 kWh lithium-ion system providing fast voltage/frequency reference and island support. [4]

05

Battery energy storage

S&C Electric Company — PureWave CES

25 kW/25 kWh community-energy-storage unit. [2][4]

06

Protection and switching

S&C Electric Company — IntelliRupter PulseCloser, Scada-Mate CX, and Vista Underground Distribution Switchgear

Detects/tests faults, islands zones, isolates faulted sections, and dynamically reconfigures the system. [2]

07

Microgrid controls

Schneider Electric — Microgrid Controller; PowerLogic; StruxureWare Demand Side Operations

Coordinates DER dispatch, load preservation, building demand, utility pricing, forecasts, and operating history. [2][3]

Technical record

Architecture, performance, and project updates

Concise technical facts, milestones, operating results, and later developments. Dated notes distinguish historical design claims from current evidence.

  • Management

    Four autonomous zones, each zone itself a microgrid. [1]

  • Generation

    Propane MicroTurbine (65 kW) [1]

  • Generation

    Photovoltaic (PV) Solar Arrays (200 kW) [1]

  • Black-start sequence

    S&C's engineering case describes grid-forming BESS energizing the island first, followed by PV and the propane microturbine; a diesel is then synchronized separately because of harmonic/control constraints. [5]

  • Resilience logic

    Continuous monitoring detects faults, isolates affected sections, preserves priority loads, and permits healthy zones to reconnect in a different topology. [2][4]

  • Demonstration center

    The TDEC interface presents live SCADA and operating data from the actual facility microgrids, rather than a simulation-only display. [4]

  • Energy mix limitation

    The facility is normally grid connected and exists to test mixed DER behavior. No audited annual solar, diesel, or propane contribution was published; nameplate values must not be converted into an energy percentage. [4][7]

Provenance

9 sources

Primary owner, government, university, supplier, and engineering sources are preferred. Archived references preserve claims whose original pages moved or disappeared.

  1. [1]
    Recovered Microgrid Projects record

    Internet Archive · Archived source · captured 2021-04-20

  2. [2]
    S&C, Schneider Electric and Oncor Complete Innovative Microgrid

    S&C Electric Company / Schneider Electric / Oncor · Primary source

  3. [3]
    Oncor Microgrid Case Study

    Schneider Electric · Primary source

  4. [4]
  5. [5]
    Oncor Microgrid Engineering Case Study

    S&C Electric Company · Primary source

  6. [6]
  7. [7]
    Virtual Microgrid Tour: Successful Projects Across the U.S.

    North Central Texas Council of Governments · Primary source

  8. [8]
    Microgrids: Oncor Microgrid

    S&C Electric Company · Primary source

  9. [9]
    Microgrid Technology and Demonstration Center (archived project page)

    MicrogridProjects.com via Internet Archive · Archived source

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