Lac-Mégantic is the ideal site for this innovative project:
- The development of an entirely new downtown area offers significant
advantages from a technical perspective.
- The vision of a downtown rebuilt based on sustainable development principles
is perfectly aligned with the spirit of the project.
- The region’s commitment is helping to ensure the active participation of the entire community.
Microgrids are community-centered initiatives to meet local users’ needs. They
may feature a range of components, such as solar panels, energy storage units
and tools for managing building’s energy use. They can be connected to
Hydro‑Québec’s main grid or function independently.
The Lac-Mégantic microgrid will be adapted to the municipality’s reality and will
evolve as the downtown area is redeveloped.
The Lac-Mégantic microgrid is a major step in Hydro‑Québec’s energy
transition and technological evolution. It will be a living technological
development project in the center of downtown Lac-Mégantic, using cutting-edge
energy technologies.
For Hydro‑Québec, the project will provide an opportunity to assess how the
new technologies could help the company pursue its mission more efficiently:
- Reduce peak power purchases
- Ensure service continuity
- Avoid grid-investment costs
- Reduce the operating costs of its off-grid systems
The work conducted as part of Hydro‑Québec’s technology development
projects stands to contribute to the development of new products and services
for customers.
The potential advantages for customers are as follows:
- Lower power consumption
- Greater comfort
- Uninterrupted service at all times to certain buildings
With the Lac-Mégantic microgrid, Hydro‑Québec is enhancing its expertise in
the areas of solar power integration, energy storage and demand-side management.
This expertise will be used, in part, to convert Hydro‑Québec’s
22 off-grid systems, where fossil fuels are used to generate electricity.
Work began in 2018. Further work
was carried out as the downtown area was rebuilt.
It will be possible to maintain electricity service to certain buildings.
However, this will not be possible for the entire microgrid.
They should not be affected and will continue to receive the same service as
before. However, by maximizing the use of demand-side management tools, some
customers may reduce their electricity consumption without sacrificing comfort.
It’s true that a wind turbine is very much in keeping with the notion of a
microgrid. However, in this case, given the project’s city-center location, a
wind turbine wasn’t a workable solution. Why? Because of its size. Such
structures are much, much bigger than you might think if you’ve never seen one
up close. There was simply no place to put it! Also, to be worthwhile, a wind
turbine also needs to be positioned strategically, meaning in a place where the
wind is strong and reliable.
One goal of the project was to master technologies that can then be transposed to
off-grid systems in northern Québec. While solar panels and battery systems can
be installed just about anywhere, a wave energy device requires a waterway with very strong current, like the Fleuve Saint-Laurent (St. Lawrence River). But that’s not all: other factors come into play as well.
In reality, finding a waterway that’s perfectly suited to a hydrokinetic
turbine is very difficult.
