Garth Brokaw

Catalyst Power Holdings LLC, a provider of energy solutions for the commercial and industrial sectors, has partnered with the Gates Historical Society for a new 1.4 MW community solar farm in Rochester, N.Y.The farm, to be built on 13 acres of land, will provide affordable clean energy while supporting local jobs and economic development.“Our partnership with Catalyst Power provides us with increased revenue and allows us to support the local community by hosting clean solar energy,” says Garth Brokaw, president of the Gates Historical Society.In addition to community solar, Catalyst Power provides its commercial and industrial customers with a suite of cleaner energy solutions, including a connected microgrid network. The company uses a proprietary technology platform that provides perspective on data to identify, underwrite, fund and provide solutions to customers while operating more cost-effective onsite energy projects for retail energy clients.

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Image: Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables.

The US energy storage sector deployed 4.8GW in 2022, close to the combined amount installed in 2020 and 2021, despite a “slight dip” in install figures towards the end of last year.

The figure comes from the latest edition of the US Energy Storage Monitor, authored by market research firm Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables (WoodMac) and published in partnership with the American Clean Power Association (ACP) trade group.

The report is quarterly, but the newest edition, for Q4 2022, rounds up some of the headline statistics and trends for last year.

In 2020 and 2021, 5GW of energy storage was deployed across all market segments, making 2022 the “best year yet,” according to ACP vice president of research and analytics John Hensley.

“Cumulative operating utility-scale storage capacity increased by 80%. While we saw a slight dip in installations toward the end of the year, the trend is clear: Energy storage is on a rapid growth curve and is already a key component of building a resilient grid that supports abundant clean energy,” Hensley said today.

In the fourth quarter of last year, 1,067MW was added across the different segments: grid-scale, residential and non-residential (representing commercial and industrial, and community-scale projects).

While that’s still more than has been seen in all but four of the most recent quarterly reports since Q4 2020, it was a 26% decrease from Q3 2022 and 514MW fewer than in Q4 2021, which was the biggest quarter recorded to date with 1,581MW.

A slowdown in the US grid-scale sector, which traditionally accounts for the bulk of deployments by far is the main reason for that dip. 848MW of grid-scale deployments were recorded over the three months between September and December, which compares unfavourably with Q3 2022’s 1,257MW of grid-scale and Q2’s 1,204MW.

Regular readers of this site will perhaps be unsurprised to note that WoodMac analysts ascribed this downturn to two primary factors: interconnection constraints and supply chain-related delays or difficulties in procuring equipment.

WoodMac said more than 3GW of projects due to come online in Q4 2022 had been either delayed or cancelled. Added to projects already known to be delayed or cancelled prior to that, it accounts for 7GW in total, which the firm said is most likely due to developers being unable to procure equipment in the timeframe required by their contracts or business case, or due to increased costs.

The analysis firm noted that grid-scale battery energy storage system (BESS) costs went up year-on-year, from US$1,636/kW in Q4 2021 to US$1,933/kW in Q4 2022, an increase of 18%.

Nonetheless, the pipeline of grid-scale projects has grown significantly, by 53% from 302GW of combined announced projects and projects in interconnection queues in the final quarter of 2021, to 463GW in the final quarter of 2022.

The numbers of projects waiting interconnection far outweighed announced projects in both cases. That being said, the volume of queuing projects seeking connections between 2023 and 2028 declined by about 10% from the previous quarter. Independent system operators (ISOs) that operate wholesale markets as well as grids have begun filtering out applications that don’t meet required standards, while some developers have withdrawn applications after a rush to secure queue positions subsided.

In megawatt-hour terms, that 1067MW of Q4 deployments meant 3,030MWh of new energy storage capacity, with 2,506MWh of that at grid-scale.

Light blue = grid-scale, Dark blue = C&I and community-scale, Grey = Residential. Image: Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables

75GW forecasted between 2023 and 2027

Annual energy storage deployments are climbing across all sectors though, including a year-on-year increase from 3,575MW/10,891MWh in 2021 to 4,798MW/12,181MWh last year.

For a bigger picture perspective, in 2017 – as the industry was still just getting started – a total 288MW/645MWh was deployed, meaning the market has grown some 1,789% since then.

WoodMac predicts ongoing growth, with senior analyst Vanessa Witte stating that 75GW of deployments are forecasted between 2023 and 2027, some 81% of which, about 60GW, will be in the grid-scale segment.

The firm’s most recent prediction, issued in Q3 2022’s edition of the US Energy Storage Monitor, had been for 65GW of deployments across all segments between 2022 and 2026.

Residential energy storage continues to grow as well, with about 171MW deployed in Q4 2022, a rise from 151MW the previous quarter, and annual installations for home batteries are predicted to exceed 2.7GW by 2027. Non-residential commercial and industrial (C&I) and community installations, traditionally the smallest segment and slowest to grow, will continue to be the smallest segment, but will likewise grow to 1.4GW annual installations by that time.

Also looking out longer term, WoodMac said price relief is on the horizon for batteries, with raw materials and battery precursor costs coming down after a peak in Q4. Meanwhile cost declines at system level are likely on the way, albeit other pressures will still be felt, such as supply chain delays and labour market tightness.

Energy-Storage.news’ publisher Solar Media will host the 5th Energy Storage Summit USA, 28-29 March 2023 in Austin, Texas. Featuring a packed programme of panels, presentations and fireside chats from industry leaders focusing on accelerating the market for energy storage across the country. For more information, go to the website.

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This edition’s cover story focuses on agrivoltaics. Illustration by Luca D’Urbino for Solar Media.

The Q1 2023 edition of our downstream solar journal, PV Tech Power, is now available to download, including comprehensive coverage on agrivoltaics and how it can open up more land for solar deployment.

The cover story of Volume 34 details how developers are taking advantage of opportunities in agrivoltaics while navigating the challenges it entails both during the construction phase and once completed with a look at different markets including the US, Australia, Africa, Germany and France.

As well as looking at how the use of solar data can shine a light on extreme weather events and protect assets and reduce risks, this issue reveals how solar developers are drawn to the emerging solar hotspot that is Romania ahead of a new contracts for difference (CfD) scheme.

As always, ‘Storage & Smart Power’, the section of the journal contributed by Energy-Storage.news returns too. Feature articles in the latest edition are:

Evolution of business models for energy storage systems in Europe

Europe’s energy networks are united in their common need for energy storage to enable decarbonisation of the system while maintaining integrity and reliability of supply. What that looks like from a market perspective is evolving, write Naim El Chami and Vitor Gialdi Carvalho, of Clean Horizon.

Jigar Shah on US battery ecosystem, recycling and reuse, the EU’s IRA response and the waning dominance of lithium-ion

Energy-Storage.news reporter Cameron Murray caught up with Jigar Shah, Director of the US Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office and one of the most influential figures in the US executive department’s drive to build out clean energy technologies.

Hunting the ‘missing money’ in New York’s energy storage market

It’s often considered among the leading US states for energy storage, but to date this reputation New York enjoys has been based more on ambition and favourable policy direction than action. ESN editor Andy Colthorpe hears why this is expected to change in the next couple of years.

Physical security for battery energy storage

Cameron Murray talks to industry experts about the physical risks to battery storage sites, and how the security and insurance aspects of operating BESS sites are evolving.

You can download your digital copy of PV Tech Power 34 via our subscription service here.

PV Tech Premium subscribers receive every copy of PV Tech Power as part of their subscription as soon as they are published, as well as exclusive content on PV Tech, weekly briefing emails and a host of other benefits.

For more details on PV Tech Premium, including how to subscribe, click here.

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The State Capitol of New Mexico in Santa Fe. Image: Jena G / Wikicommons

The Senate of New Mexico has passed a bill, which will require investor-owned utilities to have 2GW/7GWh of energy storage online by 2033, the second such move by a US state this week.

The upper house of the State legislature passed Senate Bill 456 by 25 votes to 11 earlier this week (13 March). It will now go the House Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Committee (HENRC), part of the House of Representatives.

The Bill, which has an effective date of 1 July, 2023, entails amending the state’s Public Utility Act to include an energy storage deployment target.

Specifically, the Bill reads, the state will target 1,000MW/3,500MWh of energy storage deployments by December 31, 2028, and an additional identical amount by the same date in 2033, meaning a total of 2,000MW/7,000MWh online by 2034.

The figures have changed slightly from the first version of the bill, which mandated energy storage capacity targets of 4,000MWh and 8,000MWh for each date respectively. That means the average duration being targeted has gone from four hours – what the California ISO requires for projects to provide capacity through its Resource Adequacy framework – to 3.5 hours.

“The amount of energy storage capacity that an individual qualifying utility may be required to procure or deploy by the commission (New Mexico Public Regulation Commission), as part of the statewide energy storage target set forth in Subsection A of this section, shall be determined by the commission,” the Bill said.

The Bill’s stipulations around energy storage deployments apply to the state’s three investor-owned utilities, which serve 73% of the New Mexico population: Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM), El Paso Electric (EPE) and Xcel Energy. They do not apply to smaller electric cooperatives regulated under the Rural Electric Cooperative Act.

It also provided a broad definition of energy storage which opens up the market to a range of technologies, defining it as: “…commercially available technology that is capable of retaining energy,storing the energy for a period of time and delivering the energy after storage by chemical, thermal, mechanical or other means”.

Large-scale battery storage projects in the state so far have tended to be four-hour systems. PNM is planning to procure the energy from a co-located 150MW/600MWh project from DE Shaw Renewable Investments (DESRI), which was expected to come online last year although no announcement has been made. A year ago, technology firm Honeywell announced it would deploy a 20MW/80MWh lithium-ion battery storage project for a PNM solar farm.

The move by the New Mexico Senate follows hot on the heels from the lower house in Michigan proposing its own legal energy storage target, of 2.5GW of deployments by 2030.

See the Senate Bill 456 as it was passed this week in full below.

Energy-Storage.news’ publisher Solar Media will host the 5th Energy Storage Summit USA, 28-29 March 2023 in Austin, Texas. Featuring a packed programme of panels, presentations and fireside chats from industry leaders focusing on accelerating the market for energy storage across the country. For more information, go to the website. Reporter Cameron Murray will be attending both days.

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Image: European Parliament.

Initial reaction to the European Commission’s proposal on reforming Electricity Market Design (EMD) from energy storage industry associations and participants has been largely positive.

The European Commission (EC) published its proposal yesterday, as reported by our colleagues at PV Tech. According to energy storage industry sources, the final proposal does not deviate greatly from an earlier leaked draft.

That draft put energy storage front and centre of European Union (EU) efforts to maintain security of energy supply as the transition to renewable energy accelerates in the bloc, with storage regarded as a key flexibility resource along with other measures like scaling up demand response and interconnectors.

Also published yesterday was a recommendation from the EC on how to promote the acceleration of energy storage deployment, as reported by Energy-Storage.news.

Electricity Market Design reactions from trade groups

European energy storage trade association EASE said it welcomed the EC’s “raised ambition for energy storage” in the proposed EMD reforms. EASE applauded the Commission for recognising: “the crucial role of energy storage in enabling the deployment of renewable energy and reducing dependence on fossil generation”.

It was “incredibly positive,” EASE said in a statement sent to this site, that the EC wants to improve how capacity markets work, to design support schemes for flexibility resources, introduce flexibility objectives at national level for EU Member States, and encourage the uptake of power purchase agreements (PPAs), particularly for large corporate users of electricity.

Capacity markets:

These have historically provided long-term contracts that have gone to fossil fuel-based resources. EASE noted that while this has been justified to date by the role played by these lucrative contracts in energy security, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and subsequent energy crisis laid bare that it would be a mistake to keep relying on fossil fuels. European capacity markets should gradually lower the cap on carbon intensity of eligible resources, EASE said.

National flexibility objectives:

These mandates for Member States to assess their flexibility requirements on an ongoing basis were “warmly welcomed” by the trade group.

Flexibility support schemes and PPAs:

These schemes would “strike a good balance between providing revenue certainty and ensuring exposure to price signals,” which EASE said is essential to the business case for energy storage projects. On a related note, PPAs would help by providing long-term revenue certainty, but should be based on time-matching renewable energy generation with consumption.

Another trade association, Smart Energy Europe (SmartEn), provided a brief statement from its executive director, Michael Villa, calling the Electricity Market Design proposal “a solid one,” and urging EU co-legislators “to support and, eventually, improve these proposals to protect, empower and reward consumers for their contribution to a cost-effective clean energy transition”.

SmartEn promotes consumer-driven energy transition technologies including support for efforts to electrify transport and buildings, as well as homes and businesses.

Villa went on to say that the national flexibility objective for demand response and storage would be a “major step forward” to quantify, track and stimulate flexibility in the network, while describing various other aspects of the plan such as aiming for greater energy sharing between states and wholesale market rules also as steps in the right direction.

The only area where EASE and SmartEn’s assessment of the proposal deviates slightly is that reforms to promote peak shaving were questioned by the energy storage group and welcomed by SmartEn.

In short, peak shaving means energy consumers that reduce the amount of electricity they use from the grid at peak times can not only save money on their electricity bills, but also reduce strain on the grid and its operators. That can also have a significant impact on carbon intensity of grid electricity.

However, the EC’s proposal for peak shaving only really covers behind-the-meter resources, and this therefore excludes standalone or large-scale energy storage systems from participating. Comments from a representative of battery storage company Fluence echoed EASE’s concern around this exclusion.

Industry players Wärtsilä and Fluence

Wärtsilä Energy director of growth and development Louis Strydom said the focus on flexibility was welcome, but advocated that “firm, flexible capacity” – which basically means natural gas generation in today’s energy system context – should continue to play a role, which Strydom said has been overlooked by the EC.

Wärtsilä Energy is well-known to readers of this site as an integrator and manufacturer of battery energy storage system (BESS) solutions, but of course its legacy business lies largely with the gas-fired thermal engines it also makes. The company does believe however that it can decarbonise these over time with additions of fuel such as green hydrogen.

“Energy storage and balancing engine power plants are not competing technologies. Like two sides of the same coin, they’re complementary solutions for improving grid reliability and resilience. To capitalise on renewables – we need major increases in all forms of flexible capacity, working together to balance the renewable path to net zero,” Strydom said.

According to a Wärtsilä study therefore, Europe needs about 50GW of energy storage alongside 19GW of “new flexible gas capacity” by 2030 to support an additional 1,100GW of renewable energy capacity by that time.

Fluence’s views on the EMD and its process are pretty well documented to date, with its EMEA market and policy directors Julian Jansen and Lars Stephan having written up their own recommended proposals for our quarterly journal PV Tech Power.

Stephan also commented recently on the leaked draft Electricity Market Design reforms, as well as the energy storage recommendations yesterday, calling the former the “strongest legislative language” in support of energy storage from the EC to date and the latter a de facto “energy storage strategy” for Europe.

Stephan told Energy-Storage.news today that those descriptions still stand, stating that in the proposal he found: “The Commission strongly highlighting the need for energy storage to integrate the increasing shares of renewables, and the language on this has never been stronger”.

“The Commission proposal provides a clear pathway for Member States to bring clarity around system needs for flexibility, and enables member states to find appropriate support schemes for storage and demand response. We believe storage will integrate via markets into electricity grids, as it does today in many European countries. But the support mechanisms provide member states now with new options, in a similar way as they exist today for renewable assets,” Stephan said.

However, as EASE did, Stephan said restricting the peak shaving schemes to behind-the-meter resources only would be a mistake, while adding that stronger consideration of the role energy storage can play in supporting transmission system operators (TSO) and distribution system operators (DSOs), as included in the energy storage recommendation yesterday was welcome.

“The swift implementation of those key provisions on member state level will be key,” Stephan said.

“As with the Clean Energy Package, some countries will go ahead fast than others e.g., recent tenders being launched in Spain and Greece, and this proposed Electricity Market Design enables those first movers to go ahead quicker than before.”

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Silicon Valley Bank was the 16th-largest commercial bank in the US before its rapid collapse last week. Image: Tony Webster / Flickr.

The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) has raised questions around the availability of capital for the clean energy sector, having been a major actor in the space to-date including with Sunrun, Leap, AES, Cypress Creek Renewables and other developers.

The bank went into receivership last week after customers withdrew deposits en-mass leaving it with a negative cash balance. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) quickly stepped in and transferred all deposits and all assets to a new ‘bridge bank’ entity – Silicon Valley Bridge Bank – allowing customers’ business to continue uninterrupted.

But the collapse has raised questions for the c.1,500 clean energy companies it has worked with, and the plethora of renewable energy and energy storage projects it has financed including some 62% of all community solar in the US. While the FDIC’s move appears to prevent any short-term fallout, the long-term effect on the availability of capital, specifically tax equity, has divided opinion.

Banking sources interviewed by S&P Global, for example, mostly said that other financial institutions would be more than willing to step in and take on existing loans and fill in the void left by the bank for future deals. However, the bank’s collapse may reinforce the perception amongst some that both the cost and scarcity of capital are increasing, according to Ted Brandt, CEO of investment bank Marathon Capital.

Sunrun

US residential solar and storage systems installer Sunrun had exposure to Silicon Valley Bank totalling nearly 15% of its hedging facilities, nearly US$80 million in cash deposits, and the bank still had an US$40 million undrawn portion of a large debt facility.

In addition to a statement issued on 10 March, Sunrun CEO Mary Powell provided sister site PV Tech with the following comments after the FDIC’s Bridge Bank was announced:

“We are pleased that the federal government acted Sunday to stabilize the banking system, ensuring us access to the less than US$80 million we had in deposits at SVB. Sunrun has long-standing banking relationships with a large number of financial institutions, and we remain confident in our ability to replace SVB’s undrawn commitments. Sunrun has always believed in strength through diversification.”

Debt facilities: Leap, Flux Power and e-Zinc

The bank also provided the debt portion of a US$33 million fundraise round by distributed energy resources (DER) platform company Leap in late 2021. In a statement provided to Energy-Storage.news, Leap CEO Thomas Folker said:

“Like the thousands of other technology companies banking with Silicon Valley Bank, Leap was shocked and concerned to hear of their rapid decline into receivership last week.”

“We took swift steps to ensure that Leap had access to sufficient capital to maintain our operations and,at this point, we do not foresee any near-term or long-term impacts to Leap’s business.”

Other firms with debt facilities from the bank include commercial and industrial equipment lithium-ion energy storage solutions firm Flux Power (a US$14 million credit facility in January 2023) and zinc-based battery firm e-Zinc (a US$7 million facility in October 2022).

E-Zinc has not responded to a request for comment while a spokesperson for Flux Power pointed to the FDIC’s Bridge Bank announcement.

Developers and project financing: Leeward, Cypress Creek, AES and others

The bank was also active in providing financing for many large-scale solar and storage projects across the US. In the past year Solar Media reported on the following deals it participated in:

Cypress Creek told PV Tech: “Cypress Creek is aware of the recent failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank (another collapsed bank). We do not expect these incidents to have a material impact on our business operations but we are continuing to monitor the situation closely.”

Further back, it was involved in financing deals for Plus Power’s 565MWh Kapolei project in Hawaii, AES Corporation subsidiary sPower, AES Corporation directly for a community solar portfolio, and deals with Distributed Solar Development (DSD) and Vivint Solar back in 2019.

Plus Power declined to comment when asked by Energy-Storage.news.

Cash holdings: Stem Inc, Proterra and QuantumScape

Other energy storage firms with exposure through cash holdings in the bank include AI-driven energy storage company Stem Inc, large EV and storage solutions firm Proterra and solid-state battery technology company QuantumScape. All three issued statements last week.

Stem Inc said its holdings amounted to less than 5% of its cash and short-term investments, Proterra said it had a ‘de minimis‘ (not significant) amount while QuantumScape described it had a “…low single digit percentage exposure relative to both the Company’s total liquidity and total assets”.

Future of Silicon Valley Bank

At its peak, Silicon Valley Bank had a market capitalisation of US$44 billion and total assets of US$212 million, making it the 16th-largest commercial bank in the US. The bank may still come out of this intact, with various venture capital firms reportedly mulling a takeover and re-organisation.

The newly-appointed CEO of the Bridge Bank entity Tim Mayapoulos issued a statement yesterday (14 March), via Silicon Valley Bank’s website, calling on those who withdrew funds to transfer them back to the bridge bank and “support the future of this institution”. HSBC has stepped in and acquired its much smaller UK arm.

Read all Energy-Storage.news coverage of energy storage financing deals involving Silicon Valley Bank here.

Energy-Storage.news’ publisher Solar Media will host the 5th Energy Storage Summit USA, 28-29 March 2023 in Austin, Texas. Featuring a packed programme of panels, presentations and fireside chats from industry leaders focusing on accelerating the market for energy storage across the country. For more information, go to the website. Reporter Cameron Murray will be attending both days.

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Keeping the lights on while decarbonising will require far more energy storage than the EU market is set up to facilitate, the EC said. Image: NASA.

The European Commission (EC) has published a strategy through which energy storage can become a cornerstone of a decarbonised and secure energy system for the European Union (EU).

Described by one source as a de facto ‘Energy storage strategy’ for the bloc, the recommendation document was published today, setting out the ways Member States of the EU can assess their individual and collective requirements for energy storage.

The recommendation comes in the wake of the EU considerably upping its EU Green Deal renewable energy targets with REPowerEU, its follow-up strategy focused more on achieving energy independence, particularly regarding decoupling from imported Russian fossil fuels.

Overall, that means achieving the Green Deal’s aim of climate neutrality by 2050, and an interim 55% reduction in net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2030. Meanwhile, clean energy would be an important tool for accelerating the reduction in dependence on gas from Russia.

The recommendations were referred to in brief in a leaked draft of the EC’s proposals on reforming the EU’s Electricity Market Design (EMD). The finalised EMD proposals came out today, as reported by sister site PV Tech. These are set to be discussed and agreed upon by the European Parliament and Council before coming into effect.

As mentioned in Energy-Storage.news’ coverage of the leaked draft yesterday, the EC wants Member States to assess their need for flexibility in their energy networks – which is set to become acute as the proportion of energy taken from variable renewable sources like solar PV and wind grows.

The document pointed out the various strengths and capabilities of energy storage to provide value to multiple stakeholders across Europe. Most of these will be familiar to regular readers of this site, but it is perhaps encouraging to see them spelled out by a multilateral legislative body like the EC.

Indeed, the recommendation is subtitled: ‘on Energy Storage – Underpinning a decarbonised and secure EU energy system’.

“To achieve the Union’s climate and energy targets, the energy system is undergoing a profound transformation characterised by improved energy efficiency, the massive and rapid deployment of variable renewable energy generation, more players, more decentralised, digitalised and interconnected systems and increased electrification of the economy,” the EC wrote in its recommendation, adding that that means flexibility resources like energy storage, demand response and interconnection between grids will be key, with the EU projected to reach 69% renewable energy by 2030.

The recommendation also highlighted that as well as batteries used for electricity storage in the power sector, thermal energy storage technologies which can provide renewable heat will also be essential.

Meanwhile energy storage can promote the decarbonisation of multiple sectors, whether through electric vehicles (EVs) and associated infrastructure, or through electrification of buildings and commercial and industrial (C&I) premises.

Elsewhere, the EC highlights the value of energy storage for individual consumers including households and businesses behind-the-meter, such as increasing self-consumption of solar PV energy generated onsite. Remote regions such as islands can also become more self-sufficient as well as decarbonised with the deployment of storage.

However, the EC noted that a number of challenges remain for the deployment of energy storage. Some of those challenges are linked to the difficulty in providing long-term revenue predictability and visibility to investors, making it hard to access finance.

Nonetheless, the EU electricity market is already designed to allow full participation of energy storage, meaning that in theory it can access different revenue streams and ‘stack’ revenues, maximising the value they bring to the system.

Facilitating change: 10 recommendations in strategy

EU State Aid rules allow for investment in energy security and supply measures to promote greener energy options. Energy storage falls neatly in line with that, with the likes of Greece, Romania, Bulgaria and Finland already benefiting.

Transmission system operators (TSOs) should be able to leverage the benefits of energy storage in helping to manage peak demand on the grid, and the EC said “well-designed network charges and tariff schemes that strengthen the use of flexibility tools such as energy storage” would further enable that, with TSOs required to plan their investments on a 10-year horizon.

The EC’s recommendation featured a 10-point plan, which is further explained in detail in a 35-page Staff Working Document.

In short, it calls for the removal of existing barriers, such as ‘double-charging’ – whereby energy storage facilities have to pay twice to use the grid, once for drawing energy from it and again for injecting energy in. Double-charging rules are gradually being toppled across some European grid networks but still exist on others.

The aforementioned assessment of individual states’ flexibility needs features prominently, including a recommendation that national regulatory authorities play a role in making sure these are done properly by energy system operators.

The EC called for Member States to identify “potential financing gaps” and find ways to help bridge them, including the need for financial instruments to provide some revenue visibility and certainty for investors.

Other recommendations include: that ancillary services markets are examined to see if they provide adequate recompense and revenue stacking opportunities for the various grid-balancing services such as frequency regulation; that Member States consider the introduction of competitive bidding processes for flexibility resources; that they identify any regulatory and non-regulatory barriers to energy storage uptake; promote energy storage in remote regions; produce and share data on energy network metrics such as renewable energy production and curtailment; and support research and innovation in energy storage.

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The Michigan House of Representatives. Image: Michigan Municipal League / Flickr.

Democrat lawmakers in Michigan have proposed a bill requiring utilities to have a combined 2,500MW of energy storage online by 2030, and are mulling a specific target for long-duration technologies.

House Bill 4256 is being sponsored by state representative Jenn Hill and would require state-regulated utilities to have a combined total of 2,500MW of battery storage capacity in operation by December 31, 2029. It is co-sponsored by 19 other Democrats.

The proposal includes a requirement that at least 50% of the energy storage capacity be owned by an entity other than the electric utilities themselves, and that the utility must procure the project’s energy under a (at least) 15-year contract.

Those contracts would also have certain criteria. One is that the energy storage systems would need to be able to participate in wholesale electricity markets and provide all services that the technology is capable of doing.

The Bill also has stipulations around providing long-term revenues to support third-party financing and ensuring increased value for electric customers.

Its authors also want to see a study to determine procurement targets specifically for long-duration energy storage systems (LDES) and ‘multiday energy storage systems’. The Bill defined LDES as storage systems with a discharge duration of 10 hours or more.

The proposal mirrors an interim target proposed in the The Michigan Healthy Climate Plan, launched in April last year by the state’s governor Gretchen Whitmer. That followed on from the US state’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) recommending the 2,500MW 2030 target in a report a month prior, both covered by Energy-Storage.news at the time.

The state falls within the territory operated by regional transmission system operator (TSO) Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO).

Although downstream large-scale energy storage deployments have been few and far between in Michigan, it is the site of some notable battery and battery component manufacturing projects.

US firm Our Next Energy (ONE) is set to open a new lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cell gigafactory in Van Buren in 2024 while a new sodium-ion battery plant is being built by Natron Energy and Clarios International on the site of an existing lithium-ion plant in Meadowbrook.

See the House Bill 4256 in full below.

Energy-Storage.news’ publisher Solar Media will host the 5th Energy Storage Summit USA, 28-29 March 2023 in Austin, Texas. Featuring a packed programme of panels, presentations and fireside chats from industry leaders focusing on accelerating the market for energy storage across the country. For more information, go to the website.

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Microvast’s Energy Tech and Testing Center in Colorado. Image: Microvast.

Microvast, a technology innovator that designs, develops, and manufactures lithium-ion battery solutions, recently launched its new Energy Division with the anticipated release of an industry-leading battery energy storage system (ESS).

Microvast’s ESS offers 4.3MWh usable energy density per 20-foot container, one of the highest levels of energy density available on the market.

Additionally, Microvast’s ESS solution has superior energy retention and roundtrip efficiency capabilities.

“We are excited to launch the new Microvast Energy Division supporting the rapidly growing energy storage market, with an initial focus in the United States,” said Zach Ward, President of Microvast Energy.

“Our new energy storage system provides our customers with superior energy retention and roundtrip efficiencies, translating to significant economic advantages over competitive products.”

New Energy Division headed by industry veteran

Microvast is pleased to have Ward join as the head of the new Energy Division. Ward is an industry veteran with more than 18 years of experience in the solar energy sector as a senior executive for several of the largest and most active companies in renewable energy. He has executed more than 20GW of utility and distributed generation solar and 2GWh of energy storage projects.

Overseeing the Energy Division’s strategic initiatives, direction, operations, product development, sales, and key relationships, Ward has been actively recruiting and hiring a dedicated team composed of experienced industry personnel for the premiere of the new Energy Division and rollout of Microvast’s groundbreaking ESS container.

Speaking on the division’s new ESS solutions, Ward states, “Our utility-scale ESS container provides critical infrastructure capable of addressing the gap between renewable energy supply and peak grid demand. With the recent passing of the Inflation Reduction Act and the construction of our new 780,000 sq. ft. Tennessee manufacturing facility, we look forward to advancing clean and renewable energy initiatives.”

ESS container delivering industry-leading energy density

Microvast Energy Division’s priority is bringing its battery energy storage system, the ME-4300-UL ESS Container (the “ESS Container”), to the US market.

The ESS Container is designed for energy-shifting applications such as renewables integration, peak demand, and capacity support. The Microvast energy storage system delivers an industry-leading usable energy density of 4.3MWh per 20-foot container. This higher density equals fewer containers, a smaller footprint, easier installation, and less maintenance for utility-scale plants.

Additionally, the ESS Container offers a long battery life of more than 10,000 cycles under normal operating conditions, as well as easy transportation and installation for fast deployment at utility-scale plants, increasing overall project velocity.

Demonstrating Microvast’s commitment to becoming the leading provider of energy storage for utility-scale projects, the ESS Container is packed with features including:

The 6th generation battery management system (BMS) is developed and programmed in the United States to help ensure grid security

Ready-to-install, 20-foot liquid-cooled battery container with an industry-leading energy density of 4.3MWh per container (up to 30% more energy density than leading ESS containers)

Vigorously tested and qualified battery cells and modules based on Microvast’s proven commercial electric vehicle (EV) battery technology

Innovative safety features including fire suppression and explosion prevention systems

Expected to qualify as “domestic content” under the Inflation Reduction Act

“The superior performance of our products, domestic production capabilities, and our team’s ability to effectively execute large-scale utility projects sets Microvast apart. We believe our ESS solutions offer substantial benefits to our customers, including a lower total cost of ownership and expected eligibility for Inflation Reduction Act benefits,” Ward says.

Microvast’s ESS container will incorporate battery cells and modules manufactured in Clarksville, Tennessee. The Clarksville facility features 780,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing space on 85 acres and is expected to create hundreds of new jobs in the region.

“The Clarksville plant should contribute to the resilience of the domestic lithium-ion battery supply chain, create manufacturing jobs, and expand American battery capacity for the US power grid,” says Shane Smith, Microvast’s Chief Operating Officer.

New Energy Division adds depth to Microvast’s lithium-ion battery product portfolio

Although new to the stationary energy segment, Microvast is an established brand in the electric vehicle battery market, with more than 30,000 commercial and specialty vehicles in operation worldwide and over 17 years of experience in the design, development, and manufacturing of lithium-ion battery solutions.

The battery cell and module technology used for the ESS Container is built on the proven performance of Microvast’s lithium-ion battery solutions developed for the commercial electric vehicle (EV) market. The battery cells incorporate Microvast’s 53.5Ah NMC cell technology, boasting 235 Wh/kg of energy density.

“Energy customers can trust and depend on Microvast’s 17 years of proven expertise in lithium-ion battery manufacturing and our experience with 30,000 battery systems operational worldwide,” states Ward.

Cutting the ribbon to open the Colorado center. Image: Microvast.

Microvast’s new ESS solutions have been developed for grid-scale energy storage projects using the same proven technology as Microvast’s EV batteries, which offer very high energy density, outstanding safety features, and unmatched performance. Production of the ESS Container begins in 2023, with first customer deliveries happening in the second half of 2023.

“The positive response we have received from potential customers in the United States speaks volumes. Our future plans include expanding the ESS platform globally, leveraging our existing manufacturing facilities in Asia and Europe. We expect the current electrification trends to further accelerate and keep us very busy,” says Ward.

Microvast Energy wins big contract

Microvast Energy recently announced the securing of a large contract to supply a utility-scale battery energy storage system to a US customer. The energy storage portion of the project is 1.2GWh and will be co-located with a solar plant. The energy storage containers will begin shipping in 2023, with commercial operation expected in 2024.

“This project will help position Microvast as a leader in the utility-scale energy storage market while reducing carbon emissions and assisting the local utility in meeting its growing electricity needs,” explains Ward. “We’re excited to be selected as a key supplier for one of the largest energy storage projects in the United States.”

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Solar developer IbVogt has chosen NX Horizon-XTR technology from Nextracker for its 150 MW Garnacha solar power plant in Spain.

“Due to the local zero-grading requirements on our project, we needed a solar tracker solution that would have minimal environmental impact and allow us to secure local permits,” says Patrick Zenker, global procurement director of IbVogt. “With a 10-gigawatt track record, NX Horizon-XTR gave us peace of mind and low risk.”

NX Horizon-XTR allows rows of solar panels to adjust to uneven terrain, following the natural curvature of the earth. Its terrain-following capabilities enable developers to work on challenging sites that would otherwise be infeasible. It also cuts costs by limiting grading work and associated delays, simplifying the permitting process, and reducing the need for soil-related maintenance, Nextracker says.

Solar projects using NX Horizon-XTR have a lighter impact on the environment as they leave more soil intact, benefitting the local ecology and reducing risk of soil erosion, the company adds. The projects also require less steel for extended pilings, lowering a project’s overall carbon footprint.

The Garnacha project expands Nextracker’s multi-gigawatt portfolio in Europe. The company has offices in Seville and Madrid, with dedicated employees working with customers across the continent with expertise to support the life cycle of every project.

The project is backed by a 12-year power purchase agreement with Google and is expected to begin production October.

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