Montgomery County, Maryland, a Washington, D.C. suburb, notched another microgrid win with an announcement today of a partnership to build a microgrid at a mixed-use development.
Spurred by a 2012 derecho that caused widespread power outages, the county has a portfolio of microgrids serving its public safety headquarters, correctional facility, an animal shelter, recreational center, and transit depots — with more in planning.
The latest project at Hillandale Gateway comes from a strategic alliance between energy tech giant Schneider Electric and American Microgrid Solutions (AMS), a Maryland-based microgrid company. (Schneider is the county’s development partner on several microgrids.)
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Hillandale Gateway is an all-electric development being built in Silver Spring. Its 463 units are designed to provide affordable, intergenerational housing in the Washington, DC. suburb, which ranks among the most expensive counties in Maryland for housing. The county Housing Opportunities Commission closed on $303 million in financing for the development in 2024 and allotted $35 million toward its construction through its Housing Production Fund.
AMS designed and is developing the project’s microgrid, which uses a 1.2 MW rooftop solar system and 375 kW/860 kWh battery system, along with Schneider’s EcoStruxure Microgrid Flex, a modular control and software system. The microgrid is expected to typically provide Hillandale with 72 hours of backup power and 24 hours at a minimum. It will offset 600 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually.
Hillandale Gateways will also include electric vehicle chargers, an amphitheater, a new bus transit center, and commercial, retail, and restaurant space.
The microgrid will come online in the second quarter of 2027, the same year Hillandale Gateway’s construction is scheduled to be complete.
The Schneider/AMS partnership plans to build additional microgrids that include early-stage technical evaluation, along with financial and operational planning — a move to help de-risk projects.
“This partnership with American Microgrid Solutions strengthens our ability to collectively deliver secure,
efficient and resilient microgrid deployments that communities can rely on,” said Samantha Childress,
microgrid partner & strategy director at Schneider.
Listen to this conversation to learn more about Montgomery County’s microgrid program.
