Retrofitting Hydropower Plants to Provide Emergency Services

Idaho National Laboratory (INL) will present challenges and solutions for modernizing hydropower plants with cutting-edge control systems and hybrid battery storage. The session will cover results from a recent field demonstration with Fall River Electric Cooperative, where an old rural hydropower plant was retrofit with new controls, protections, and a battery to provide electricity to critical infrastructure in the Teton Valley during blackouts. Finally, INL will provide recommendations for utilities interested in similar retrofits.