Project allows mid-Atlantic island to boost wind power capacity while maintaining stability of grid

ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, has delivered and commissioned a microgrid control solution that enables the island of Faial in the Atlantic ocean to add more wind energy to its power mix without destabilizing the network.

Faial is one of nine volcanic islands in the Azores, a Portuguese archipelago located midway between Europe and North America, about 1,500 kilometers from the mainland. The island of 15,000 inhabitants has an electricity network which operates as a self-contained microgrid, powered by six oil-fired generators that produce up to 17 megawatts (MW) of electric power.

The local power utility, Electricidade dos A