A California public utility has brought the largest battery energy storage in North America online. Funded partially by federal stimulus funds, Southern California Edison's Tehachapi Wind Energy Storage Project is designed to demonstrate the effectiveness of large-scale battery storage systems.
Southern California Edison Company is the largest electricity supply company in Southern California. As part of the U.S. Department of Energy's implementation of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the utility won funding to develop a major battery energy storage system (or BESS). The Tehachapi Wind Energy Storage project consists of an array of lithium-ion batteries capable of storing 32 megawatt-hours, deliverable as an 8 megawatt stream of energy for 4 hours. The LG Chem batteries rely on the same lithium-ion cells installed in battery packs for General Motors’ Chevrolet Volt electric vehicle, and feature 608,832 individual battery cells arrayed in 10,872 battery modules and 604 battery racks. Along with two 4MW/4.5MVA smart inverters, the project will be housed in a 6,300 square foot facility sited at SCE's existing Monolith substation.
Of the project's $49,956,528 total budget, half will be paid for by SCE, while federal funds will cover $24,978,264. In return, the project will examine whether and how the battery energy storage system improves grid performance and helps integrate wind and other large-scale variable energy resourced generation. Project performance will be measured by 13 specific operational uses, most of which either shift other generation resources to meet peak load and other electricity system needs with stored electricity, or resolve grid stability and capacity concerns that result from the interconnection of variable energy resources. These uses include: providing voltage support and grid stabilization; decreasing transmission losses; diminishing congestion; increasing system reliability; deferring transmission investment; optimizing renewable-related transmission; providing system capacity and resources adequacy; integrating renewable energy (smoothing); shifting wind generation output; frequency regulation; spin/non-spin replacement reserves; ramp management; and energy price arbitrage. In addition, the project will demonstrate how lithium-ion battery storage can provide nearly instantaneous back-up capacity, minimizing the need for fossil fuel-powered back-up generation.
Between technological advances and a series of recent policy decisions, battery energy storage could be poised for rapid growth. For example, in 2011 the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued Order No. 755, requiring the grid operators in
organized markets to compensate battery energy storage systems and other fast-ramping frequency regulation resources based on the
actual service they provide. Last year's Order No. 784 required public utilities to take into account the speed and accuracy of regulation resources such as batteries. Meanwhile, batteries are hoped to help balance into the grid large amounts of energy from intermittent renewable resources such as solar and wind projects.
After two years, the Tehachapi Wind Energy Storage Project will have completed its initial demonstration run. Will the project lead to greater deployment of battery energy storage systems in the U.S.?
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Showing posts with label battery storage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label battery storage. Show all posts
FERC Order 755 promotes energy storage
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
New technologies have the promise to help electric grid operators perform the challenging task of balancing supply and demand at all times. This means making sure there the exact amount of electricity is being generated across the region as is demanded by consumers at that very moment. Line losses and the constraints of each local transmission and distribution system add complication. If the grid gets out of balance, problems arise with the electricity's frequency and power quality. In the worst case, failure can lead to cascading blackout, and safety can be at issue.
Historically, the balancing act has involved sending coordinated dispatch instructions to generators and demand response resources. Rules typically guide the grid operator in telling individual generating units to operate at specific levels. For example, flows through hydroelectric turbines can be varied, or fuel can be added to boilers or combustion turbines at a faster or slower rate. Through careful management, these conventional generation resources have been used to balance supply and demand, providing services known as frequency response and frequency regulation.
Though it is partly automated and well-practiced, this conventional resource dispatch process does take some time to take effect. Energy storage technologies such as flywheels, and batteries can not only provide frequency regulation, but can engage and ramp up much faster than conventional resources can. These faster-ramping resources could provide the grid relief in real time, as opposed to ramping up more slowly like conventional generation.
In most US markets, providers of efficient fast-ramping frequency regulation have been compensated the same as when conventional units provide regulation service, even when using fast-ramping resources is more efficient. At times this has meant that conventional resources have been dispatched when fast-ramping ones would have been lower-cost (and less polluting). For these reasons, this October the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission found that the current frequency regulation compensation practices "result in rates that are unjust, unreasonable, and unduly discriminatory or preferential."
In Order No. 755, FERC issued a final rule requiring the grid operators in organized markets to compensate frequency regulation resources based on the actual service they provide. Under Order 755 (123 page PDF), this must include separate payments for capacity (the marginal unit’s opportunity costs of being available) and for your actual performance.
Winners under Order 755 include providers of fast-ramping frequency response. These could include developers and operators of flywheel energy storage companies like Beacon Power, battery storage facilities, and compressed air energy storage, and other resources still in the conceptual phase. Winners also include energy consumers in the markets affected by Order 755, who should benefit from lower costs through improved operational and economic efficiency.
Historically, the balancing act has involved sending coordinated dispatch instructions to generators and demand response resources. Rules typically guide the grid operator in telling individual generating units to operate at specific levels. For example, flows through hydroelectric turbines can be varied, or fuel can be added to boilers or combustion turbines at a faster or slower rate. Through careful management, these conventional generation resources have been used to balance supply and demand, providing services known as frequency response and frequency regulation.
Though it is partly automated and well-practiced, this conventional resource dispatch process does take some time to take effect. Energy storage technologies such as flywheels, and batteries can not only provide frequency regulation, but can engage and ramp up much faster than conventional resources can. These faster-ramping resources could provide the grid relief in real time, as opposed to ramping up more slowly like conventional generation.
In most US markets, providers of efficient fast-ramping frequency regulation have been compensated the same as when conventional units provide regulation service, even when using fast-ramping resources is more efficient. At times this has meant that conventional resources have been dispatched when fast-ramping ones would have been lower-cost (and less polluting). For these reasons, this October the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission found that the current frequency regulation compensation practices "result in rates that are unjust, unreasonable, and unduly discriminatory or preferential."
In Order No. 755, FERC issued a final rule requiring the grid operators in organized markets to compensate frequency regulation resources based on the actual service they provide. Under Order 755 (123 page PDF), this must include separate payments for capacity (the marginal unit’s opportunity costs of being available) and for your actual performance.
Winners under Order 755 include providers of fast-ramping frequency response. These could include developers and operators of flywheel energy storage companies like Beacon Power, battery storage facilities, and compressed air energy storage, and other resources still in the conceptual phase. Winners also include energy consumers in the markets affected by Order 755, who should benefit from lower costs through improved operational and economic efficiency.
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