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NARRATOR: Central America depends heavily on
expensive diesel fuel for power generation,
which produces carbon dioxide and other
greenhouse gas emissions.
The region is adding wind and solar power to their
electricity supplies, as well as geothermal
in some cases.
Integrating renewable energy and increasing
regional trading can reduce greenhouse gasses,
strengthen energy security, and lower
electricity costs.
But it could also cause more reliability issues,
putting customers at increased risk for
blackouts, unless power system planning and
operations are adapted.
Today, software solutions developed at the
Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National
Laboratory, with financial support from the
U.S. Department of State, are shoring up the power grid
that serves six countries across Central America
and helping to integrate clean renewable energy.
A collaboration between Ente Operador Regional,
or EOR, which manages the regional grid in
Central America and PNNL, began with the
U.S. State Department in 2012 and continues today.
ANNA SHPITSBERG: The Bureau of Energy Resources
Power Sector Program helps build
solvent, reliable, sustainable power sectors around the world.
With reliable power and energy security, countries
can see an increased standard of living for
residents, economic prosperity, and greater
regional stability.
ENR’s support to help strengthen Central
American power markets and electricity integration
aims to lower electricity costs, help the region
attract private investment, and diversify
electricity supplies to accelerate the
energy transition.
MARCELO ELIZONDO: PNNL analyzed the system
with EOR and made recommendations
for transmission expansion, grid stability,
cross-border electricity markets, improving the
Regional Control Center, and the integration
of renewable energy.
Several of our software tools were tailored for
and licensed to EOR and to the National Control
Centers in Central America, making it easier
to trade and move power within the countries.
RENE GONZÁLEZ: The technology and training
provided by Pacific Northwest National
Laboratory, with the support of the
U.S. Department of State, has contributed to increase
the volume of power trade to strengthen regional
electricity integration among six countries –
namely Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras,
Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama, which represents
a direct benefit for almost 50 million
inhabitants of Central America.
We also adopted best practices and technical
recommendations that enable safe operation
and integration to the regional power grid for
renewable energy from wind and solar sources.
EOR has also implemented recommended strategies
provided for continuous operation of the
Regional Control Center and has applied these
recommendations to establish an ultimate
Regional Control Center in Panama, capable of
assuming all operational capabilities if the main
control center in El Salvador fails.
NARRATOR: PNNL granted a royalty-free license to
EOR to use the proprietary grid tools, but each
member utility needed an individual license as well.
It normally would have taken months of individual
licensing negotiations and approvals.
But because the software tools were developed with
U.S. taxpayer funds, they are freely available
to federal agencies.
PNNL was able to use the State Department’s
government access to provide this software
directly to member utilities.
This unique approach took only about two weeks,
rather than months.
The Federal Laboratory Consortium recognized the
team with an Interagency Partnership Award for this
novel licensing strategy and collaboration
on technology transfer.
FAITH CORNEILLE: This partnership demonstrates the important ways
international and U.S. interagency collaboration built
stronger, more resilient, more interconnected power
systems that are capable of integrating diverse
technologies and withstanding extreme
weather events.
We look forward to achieving similar results
in Southeast Asia, where PNNL and the State
Department have launched a new partnership with
Vietnam and Thailand to help them rapidly scale up
wind and solar capacity.
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