A new California order that aims to take advantage of the flexibility of distributed energy resources (DER) and microgrids – while lowering interconnection costs – is a step in the right direction.

But it stops short of unlocking all the benefits of DERs, microgrid industry members said.

On March 21, California regulators approved the Limited Generation Profile (LGP) option, which allows DERs to interconnect to the grid and follow specific schedules that reflect grid constraints, according to the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC). The schedules limit how much energy DER and microgrid operators can send to the grid at different times based on grid constraints. The goal is for the LGPs to help add more renewables to the grid, minimize DER projects’ impacts on the grid and avoid expensive infrastructure upgrades that can sink projects.

The creation of the LGPs was possible in part because California requires utilities to publish detailed, time-based maps about distribution grid conditions.

These maps, called hosting capacity maps, allow developers to see where hosting capacity is limited and where it might make the most sense to propose developments, said the Institute for Local Self-Reliance in a recently released state scorecard. While some utilities offer the maps, they often don’t reflect current conditions. Most states “flunked” the hosting capacity map section of the scorecard, while California, Colorado, Washington, D.C., Hawaii and Illinois got good grades.