University of Regina unveils province's 1st microgrid lab for clean energy research

Sarah Onyango · CBC News

· Posted: May 27, 2025 7:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 5 hours ago

The University of Regina has opened the doors to a caller lab that aims to help reshape however vigor is produced and utilized crossed Saskatchewan.

The Microgrid Living Lab, a first-of-its-kind installation successful the province, was launched arsenic a hub for cleanable vigor research, development and acquisition successful Saskatchewan.

"About six per cent of generated powerfulness is mislaid successful transmission. So successful microgrids, we don't person that," said Irfan Al-Anbagi, an subordinate prof successful physics systems engineering and the lab's director.

The laboratory functions disconnected the main power grid. It's susceptible of generating, storing and distributing its ain electricity, according to the university.

"Everything is located successful 1 area: generation, retention and control, and loads," Al-Anbagi said.

"So little powerfulness dissipation, little powerfulness burned retired successful transmission. And this tin beryllium beneficial to locations wherever you person trouble supplying powerfulness and you tin utilize renewable procreation arsenic good successful these locations."

The laboratory draws powerfulness from renewable sources including star panels, wind and hydro power. It emulates however microgrids could execute successful real-world conditions, with the anticipation of place much sustainable and flexible models for powering homes, businesses and distant communities successful the province, the assemblage says.

Al-Anbagi said. "Supplying energy to these locations tin beryllium costly and hard and sometimes impossible."

Multiple functions

Al-Anbagi expects the microgrid to play a large relation successful teaching, experimental setups and research. 

"Currently I person two students, my workfellow has 2 students. So successful the future, we privation to summation that number," Al-Anbagi said.

He hopes students volition use the micogrid arsenic a hands-on tool.

"The students admit the conception erstwhile they travel and spot it, compared to erstwhile they look astatine it successful pictures, and they tin besides bash immoderate laboratory experiments."

Al-Anbagi has besides reached retired to small- and medium-sized enterprises successful the metropolis that whitethorn beryllium funny successful utilizing the laboratory for their ain improvement and testing.

"If an enactment oregon institution develops star panels and they privation to integrate the powerfulness into the power system, bash real-time monitoring, real-time connectivity, they're invited to usage this system," Al-Anbagi said.

The laboratory presently generates 10 kilowatts of star power, capable to powerfulness a residential gathering oregon aggregate homes. When the vigor isn't being utilized for teaching oregon research, it's stored successful "islanded mode," meaning it's kept abstracted from the university's main powerfulness grid.

"We don't privation to disrupt the main powerfulness proviso of the university," Al-Anbagi said.

"I think it's safer to disconnect the microgrid from the main assemblage proviso to bash our ain experiments."

That vigor is sometimes past sent into the assemblage strategy to assistance powerfulness lights, aerial conditioning and different infrastructure.

Powering Saskatchewan 

The biggest imaginable for the lab lies not successful its contiguous use, but successful however it could signifier the aboriginal of vigor successful Saskatchewan, according to Al-Anbagi.

The province's unsocial vigor challenges, from isolated bluish communities to increasing municipality centers, marque it a premier investigating crushed for microgrid solutions, helium said.

"It's not a batch of power, but I deliberation it adds up," Al-Anbagi said.

While microgrids aren't wholly caller to Western Canada, this marks the archetypal afloat functional 1 of its benignant successful Saskatchewan.

"The University of Regina's microgrid is not conscionable a lab. We usage it successful our research, successful our teaching, and it's unfastened to companies and different faculties crossed the university," Al-Anbagi said.