Salem to build state’s first community microgrid

When an ice storm, heat wave, downed powerline or rogue squirrel causes a widespread outage on the power grid, people with a separate source – like a generator – are likely the only ones with the lights still on.

That’s because they have what is known as a microgrid.

“That generator, as long as it can operate independently of our grid and provide power to whatever you need power to, that is in and of…