San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) said that five new energy storage projects with a combined capacity of 83.5MW and a demand response program equaling 4.5MW have been approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).
Image: Five new energy storage projects to come up in San Diego. Photo: courtesy of San Diego Gas & Electric.
According to the utility, the projects will add lithium-ion battery storage facilities across San Diego and south Orange counties with the new energy storage capacity to help boost grid reliability while integrating more renewables.
The energy storage facilities are expected to utilize clean energy when it is abundantly available and utilized as a resource at peak times to generate power for the two counties in southern California.
SDG&E president Scott Drury said: “The approval marks yet another milestone in our journey to create a clean energy future for every family and business in southern California.
“These projects exemplify our commitment to expanding the use of innovative energy solutions such as battery storage and demand response to benefit customers and our communities.”
SDG&E had given contracts to RES America, Advanced Microgrid Solutions, Fluence, Powin Energy, and Enel Green Power for the five energy storage projects. On the other hand, it has given a contract to OhmConnect to administer the 4.5MW equivalent demand response program which will ask customers to save energy at heavy peak times to reduce burden on the electric grid.
The biggest of the approved energy storage project is the 40MW/160MWh lithium-ion battery facility to be built by Fluence in Fallbrook. The project is slated to be completed by March 2021.
Another major project is the 30MW/120MWh lithium-ion battery storage facility to be built by Renewable Energy Systems (RES) America in San Diego. The project is likely to be completed by the end of next year.
The other three energy storage projects which have been approved are a 4MW/16MWh facility in San Juan Capistrano to be built by Advanced Microgrid Solutions, a 6.5MW/26MWh in Escondido to be built by Powin Energy, and a 3MW/12MWh facility to be built by Enel Green Power in Poway.