Southern California Edison (SCE) will receive a $25m stimulus grant from the US Department of Energy (DOE) to develop and demonstrate lithium-ion battery storage for energy generated by wind projects.
The funds will aid SCE in increased integration of wind-powered generation from the Tehachapi region in Southern California into the electric grid.
The project will be deployed at an SCE substation serving the Tehachapi area, an ideal location for testing due to the site’s challenges integrating nearby intermittent wind generation.
The battery system will be installed in early 2012, testing will take place through the end of 2014 and project results will be available in early 2015.
SCE will collaborate on the project with US battery manufacturer A123 Systems and the California Independent System Operator Corporation.
Quanta Technology and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, will provide engineering support and measurement and reporting services.
SCE senior vice president of transmission and distribution Jim Kelly said that the grant will help SCE, its partners and the electric utility industry better understand the optimal use of large-scale batteries in grid operations.
“We look forward to sharing this project’s important results with energy stakeholders and advancing the promising but still nascent field of grid-scale energy storage,” Kelly said.
