For sustainable solutions, it is vital to empower communities with knowledge and to involve them in the development process. Capacity building in Puerto Rico will provide stakeholders with the tools to operate, maintain, and monitor resilience projects.

Specific activities include:

PR-specific PVWatts and SAM Tool Enhancements and Support

NREL is developing a Spanish version of the PVWatts Calculator. NREL is also updating the System Advisor Model (SAM) with mini-grid capabilities relevant to Puerto Rico systems and have developed Spanish versions of several SAM resources.

Engage Tool Enhancements and Support

NREL is providing support for use of the Engage™️ tool as a convening hub for collaborative, user-driven capacity expansion planning in Puerto Rico including energy system models, scenarios, and local capacity-building.

PREESAT Tool Publication

NREL developed PREESAT to help decision makers explore feasible future pathways to reduce territory-wide electricity consumption and reach energy efficiency targets. PREESAT is a spreadsheet-based tool with several customizable user inputs.

Solar PV Checklists to Secure Puerto Rico's Solar Assets for Emergencies (NREL)

NREL is building the capacity to secure Puerto Rico's distributed and large-scale solar PV assets against natural hazards by developing pre- and post-storm checklists for solar installations for use by asset owners, operators, and other relevant stakeholders. Stakeholder input will be incorporated, and checklists will be shared broadly.

Capacity Building and Workforce Development

NREL is supporting Puerto Rico by effectively disseminating information to stakeholders in the form of workshops and other resources.

Capacity Building with PR Universities

SNL is partnering with Puerto Rico university students and staff to develop local capabilities and enable long-term impact of the efforts under this project.

Responsive Capacity Development and Technical Assistance

All six National Laboratories involved with Puerto Rico's energy recovery and resilience efforts are providing responsive capacity development in the form of on-demand technical assistance.