ISLAND

Imagine a situation in which a city experiences a prolonged power outage. The electricity supply is disrupted, putting critical infrastructure such as hospitals, communications, transport and water management under pressure. At the same time, electricity grids in the Netherlands are increasingly reaching their capacity limits due to grid congestion, preventing new homes, businesses and renewable energy projects from being connected. These developments highlight the vulnerability of the current energy system and its lack of preparedness for both the energy transition and disruptions.

The ISLAND project (Integrated Smart Local Autonomous eNergy Districts for resilient cities) addresses the growing need for robust, local energy systems that are less dependent on centralised infrastructure. Microgrids, local energy systems capable of generating, storing and distributing energy, offer a promising solution. They can help reduce grid congestion and, in the event of disruptions, temporarily operate autonomously to supply power to critical facilities such as hospitals, emergency support centres and other vital infrastructure.

The companies Accu’t and Resourcefully are developing battery storage with islanding capabilities and smart, flexible local energy systems using energy management systems (EMS), respectively. However, their practical experience has raised fundamental questions about how these technologies can be effectively integrated and applied in urban areas. The central research question of this project is therefore: How can area-based microgrids be designed, implemented and scaled up in urban areas to help reduce grid congestion while ensuring energy supply during prolonged power outages?

To address this question, Accu’t and Resourcefully are collaborating with AMS Institute, TU Delft and the Municipality of Amsterdam in a public-private partnership. The project combines technical development (energy generation, storage and EMS) with design-oriented research into governance, spatial integration and user acceptance.

The research takes place in an urban experimental environment at the Marineterrein in Amsterdam, where a microgrid concept will be designed and tested. This includes examining its integration with existing infrastructure, including 1,000 solar panels on Building 27, as well as its operation under grid congestion conditions and its performance in prolonged power outage scenarios.

The application forms part of a broader sociotechnical energy system in which technology, regulations, users, spatial planning and market models interact. The project therefore follows AMS Institute's Living Lab approach, in which solutions are developed and tested iteratively with stakeholders in a realistic urban context.

The project will result in a practical blueprint and implementation guidelines for urban microgrids. In doing so, it will contribute to the energy transition, strengthen urban resilience and support the development of new products and services for local energy systems, with opportunities for scaling up to other urban areas in the Netherlands and Europe.

€187.845 in PPP-funding will be allocated to the project.