Microgrid: another energy buzzword that perks people's ears. If you're looking to create your own microgrid, however, options have been limited.
Utilizing unique Victron capabilities, such as the technology behind PowerAssist, an unlimited combination of Victron systems can now work together, synchronizing their AC outputs to support and maintain a distributed set of independent battery banks and power sources. Victron's MicroGrid function allows small systems to operate in parallel and communicate with each other to support larger loads in distributed systems.
In this article, we'll clarify terms and the limitations of microgrids, briefly outline how Victron's MicroGrid function works, and share a few simple system scenarios to bring the concept home.
What is a Microgrid?
Let's quickly distinguish a "Grid' from a "Microgrid."
A grid is a network of loads and power supply lines distributed across an area, sourcing power from one or more power generators. This interconnected system relies on controls that require robust distributed connections, satellite-synchronized clocks, and redundant fail-safes, because small issues can quickly escalate into major problems, as we saw this spring in Spain and a few years ago in Texas. Issues on this scale are difficult to anticipate, and the liability from shutdowns and failures is immense.
When people use the term "micro grid," it's not clear what scale it refers to. For example, a microgrid might consist of loads distributed across multiple buildings in a factory complex with different types of equipment, including combined heat and power generators and solar sources.
Microgrids might be created where there is no grid at all: an island in the ocean or in the mountains of a developing country. In locations where one does exist, microgrids are used at the furthest reaches of the grid, where power quality and reliability are poor.
Microgrids are also a key “new” feature of the utility architecture to minimize the power grid’s need to upgrade service lines to growing communities. Enabling communities to be as independent as possible saves the utility significant costs and reduces the extreme costs associated with infrastructure improvements in these communities.
The key similarity across all these systems is that they all have multiple load centers, all connected to additional generation sources (wind, solar, hydro, diesel/propane/coal generators, etc.) in a unified AC-Coupled power system.
The Status Quo
Of course, this term has evolved. Roughly 30 years ago, SMA was the first to develop a frequency-shifting PV inverter on a distributed network that an SMA Sunny Island could modulate. Solar input could be placed anywhere along the AC power lines without additional wiring, creating a true microgrid. That was impressive technology and the first time we saw this kind of design implemented on a smaller scale in off-grid applications.
Fast forward to today. AC-coupled systems are more common, but most microgrid systems are designed around grid interaction, and we've seen almost no progress on small microgrid typologies.
What are the existing control options for microgrids? ABB, Siemens, General Electric, SEL, ComAp, or DEIF all offer state-of-the-art microgrid control using hardware at every node, interconnected by a dedicated CAN bus network. The same companies that provide controls for utilities can also offer microgrid options (with utility-scale pricing, security safeguards, and sophistication, i.e., protective relays, automation controllers, and SCADA networks used in power distribution, substations, and industrial electrical systems).
Systems like this are sophisticated and require specific knowledge to set up and monitor. They are powerful but at a cost of complexity and nuance. They are a solid, full-featured option if you're powering a small town or a significant factory, but until now, there haven't been a lot of options below this “mini-utility” level.
A Microgrid for the rest of us
Wouldn't it be great if we could design our own microgrid without relying on the main grid or a utility — and with a flexible control structure that doesn't require excessive complexity? Well, now we can.
Victron inverters, when in MicroGrid mode, operate more like generators than inverters. This means they have a "mechanical-like" dynamic response to loads that we can tune by adjusting the slope of the response as a function of frequency and voltage. The goal of this dynamic response to load is to indicate to the other Victron systems on the network the status of that specific node's loads, prompting them to either push or pull power out of their systems and onto the grid. They do this by adjusting their power factor or phasing. The end result is a series of nodes all with generating capability, all feeding back as loads develop on other sections of the micro-grid and feeding in as needed for their battery SOC or as they are loaded.
What else would we like in a microgrid? In basic terms, we want it to be flexible, reliable, and deployable without extra wires or networking requirements. We want it to be scalable, with multiple battery systems of varying sizes working together to support a network of loads. Essentially, the ability to scale small systems into larger architectures to accomplish more. We understand that running a CAN bus wire through a parking lot to connect to another system makes the entire network unreliable.
If this sounds interesting to you, it's exactly what Intelligent Controls has been testing with Victron: a new kind of MicroGrid solution that has everything you could ever want for a microgrid of any size. Like any system, it has some limitations and design complexity, but if your goal is a distributed power system that simply works, this functionality offers something truly unique. It's precisely what the market needs to hit that sweet spot in size, complexity, and cost.
Note: It's worth mentioning that companies like ComAp make controls, not power generation equipment. Victron Energy makes both the equipment and the controls required to configure a robust, self-managed microgrid. That's the main reason why this technology is even possible.
Victron MicroGrid Scenarios
If you're like us, I'm sure you've started thinking about application challenges. Let's explore some scenarios to help walk you through them.
Scenario 1: An off-grid community with multiple inverter-battery bank systems connected together, creating a unified, combined system. If this MicroGrid-enabled system is powered by solar energy through DC-to-DC charge controllers or AC-coupled PV arrays, everything flows smoothly. The batteries are charged. The loads are satisfied. If we need to power the system with a generator, we have a few options, each with some added complexity. The simplest option is to use a DC generator to charge the batteries directly. If an AC generator is utilized, it will need to be synchronized with the grid using synchronization hardware (and Victron does support this hardware from a few different manufacturers).
Note: Why do we need to synchronize an AC generator with the grid? Once the microgrid is running, you can't sense an input in one system and communicate it to all other systems to phase-shift them simultaneously to match the generator. The AC generator must match the larger system.
Scenario 2: Large, mobile, deployable power systems supply a hospital following a hurricane. Four trailer-mounted power systems in MicroGrid mode have been interconnected in parallel to supply the load. Ideally, a DC generator provides additional backup power. This modular design allows for individual system failure with redundant capabilities and infinite scalability. This makes the trailers easy to transport and easy to deploy as loads build or as the equipment is needed elsewhere.
Summary
There are reasons why hybrid generators were difficult to adopt historically. Far and away, the biggest issues were complexity and sizing considerations. The bottom line is that it was easier to get one big generator to do everything, and you didn’t have to worry about syncing generators; all you had to do was pay the bill. The bill was unnecessarily high, but you were happy to pay it because it was the easiest way to reliable power.
With Victron’s MicroGrid function, we can parallel hybrid generators in a snap, meaning you can have the right-sized generator without the exorbitant fuel bill. You can achieve a quiet operation and greater reliability than with traditional setups. Because it’s so easy to implement, it’s a direct competitor to the status quo. And the status quo should be scared.
If you've skimmed over this document, here are the main take-home points:
We can dramatically simplify the DC bus design and create modular systems, even of different sizes, that can be paralleled. This enables unprecedented flexibility and allows for system expansion over time without compatibility issues. We can even mix single-phase systems with 3-phase systems. The complications of large DC bus architecture in low-voltage systems are minimized with this strategy. People love low-voltage systems because they are safe and easy to work on. Smaller paralleled low-voltage systems are dramatically superior to single high-voltage systems in terms of safety and redundancy.
DC generators allow for zero switchover (no transfer switch) and perfect power quality (no change in frequency or electrical noise). They are more efficient and lend themselves extremely well to MicroGrids. DC generators already offer significant efficacy and footprint advantages in battery-based systems, but this functionality and the way this technology works make DC generators invaluable.
The Intelligent Controls team is actively testing and experimenting with different-sized systems in various scenarios, making us well-positioned to help you navigate Victron MicroGrid technology. Reach out to our team so we can review your application and provide design ideas and next steps to implement microgrids at your company. This technology is new, and we’re happy to reach out to Victron’s development team about specific applications that might challenge the limits of what is possible (which are the most exciting projects to work on).
Attending PowerGen2026? Visit with our team at the Victron Energy booth for a live demonstration of this technology in a fully-communicating hybrid generator system with a Victron power system, Hatz DC Generator, and a Cegasa lithium battery bank.
