This Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase II project will transform the Hybrid Optimization Model for Electric Renewables (HOMER®) software into a tool that empowers professionals, students, and industry to design "hybrid" electricity systems that blend renewable resources, which are unpredictably intermittent, and fossil-fueled-based fuels, which are polluting and expensive. As renewable resources become more prevalent due to regulatory requirements, cost decreases, and consumer interest, the numbers and complexities of these hybrid systems will rise. HOMER is a simple, easy-to-learn tool that simulates the permutations of generating equipment in an electrical system to recommend the lowest-cost configuration that satisfies consumer demand. Developed at the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) from 1992 to 2007 as a free downloadable application, the software will be converted into a web-based, e-commerce-enabled service (proven feasible in Phase I) as the vital component of HOMER Energy® LLC's growing business selling software, services and community to HOMER users. In addition, as part of this Phase II project, University researchers will apply this new version of HOMER to current, real-world issues relating to energy policy and technology in order to validate the software and promote it as a valuable research tool.
This project has the potential to improve the access, usability, and features of the HOMER® software tool with the following impacts: 1) This easy-to-use modeling tool will assist research on existing, new and conceptual types of electricity generation and storage, as well as their implications on electricity supply and policy. 2) By recommending systems with lower costs and providing more accurate estimates on initial and operating investment, distributed renewable energy will be integrated more rapidly into electrical systems, augmenting or displacing fossil-fuel-based generation with a commensurate reduction in carbon emissions while increasing the reliability and security of electricity supply; 3) The accelerated electrification of rural areas, especially in developing nations, enabled by the tool has the potential to positively impact a region's standard of living.
HOMER Energy’s mission is to facilitate decentralized renewable power projects in both remote and grid-connected power systems. By enabling all stakeholders to sort quickly through the myriad of potential combinations of generation options, including storage technologies and demand management strategies, for any situation HOMER software allows industry participants to quickly and robustly identify the most reliable and cost-effective renewable energy opportunities. HOMER Energy is upgrading its current world-leading renewable energy planning software to a multi-purpose Software as a Service (SaaS) platform that will accelerate growth of the company’s user base and better serve specific user needs. The primary task of this NSF STTR Phase II project was the construction and commercialization of a new version of the HOMER software, originally developed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. HOMER, the Hybrid Optimization Model for Electric Renewables, is the world’s only optimization software for microgrids, which will play an increasingly important role in power delivery. Commercialization converted HOMER from a free, Windows-specific program to a Flex-based, platform-neutral program with a greatly enhanced user interface. This migration set the stage for further enhancements that will enable HOMER Energy to create and support multiple versions, including custom versions of the HOMER software, and a move from a consulting company with a software product to a commercial software company with a consulting arm. The market for renewable energy ranges from small household size systems to large utility scale installations. Between the individual user and the bulk power grid is a range of "microgrids", smaller power distribution networks of generators, storage devices, and end-users that are either (1) completely off-grid or (2) can be disconnected and run independently rom the bulk power grid when necessary or desirable. Hybrid microgrids include mixes of generation sources, which may be any combination of conventional (e.g., diesel or gas turbine) and renewable sources. HOMER Energy has gone through significant positive growth since the beginning of the grant period, with steady growth in revenues in all sectors. Athough software sales are still a minority of revenue, they are also the company’s fastest growing segment. Over 78,000 people have downloaded the software, and the renewal rate is over 40%. We are actively creating jobs and synergy in an emerging technology marketplace. HOMER custom versions have been ordered (and are under development) by Fortune 100 companies, US Military branches, and smaller equipment provides, vertical markets, research labs, and others. For more information and to try a trial version of the software, visit http://homerenergy.com.
