WASHINGTON, DC — January 2004 — Three major
energy storage projects to demonstrate advanced electric energy storage
devices in California have been selected as part of an initiative between
the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Storage Research Program
and the California Energy Commission (CEC). The three-year program will
cost $9.6 million.
The DOE Energy Storage program will contribute $1.2 million in funding
and provide technical oversight for the design, operation, and monitoring
of all the demonstration sites through Sandia National Laboratories.
CEC will provide $3.8 million in funding and administrative support.
The three awardees will provide the remaining $4.6 million.
EPRI-PEAC has been selected to perform the data collection and evaluations
for the demonstrations. Exact amounts for the following project awards
are being negotiated and CEC will announce contract awards later this
year.
ZBB Energy Corporation, Menomonee Falls, Wis. A
project to reduce distribution system congestion by placing a 2MW,
2MWh zinc-bromine battery at a PG&E substation. The battery installation
will be operating in a stand-by mode to supply extra power when the
substation reaches overload conditions. The installation will be
mobile so that it can be deployed wherever the most serious peaking
loads occur.
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Palmdale Water District, Palmdale, Calif. A project
to minimize the impact of variable winds on a 950 kW wind turbine
attached to the Palmdale, CA, Water District’s treatment plant
microgrid by using a 450 kW supercapacitor device. During power outages
energy storage will also provide ride through for critical loads
until emergency generation can be brought on-line. While providing
reliable energy for the microgrid, the project will in turn help
reduce transmission and distribution congestion in the area.
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Urenco Power Technologies, San Francisco, Calif. A
project to deploy a 400 kW flywheel system on the San Francisco MUNI
rail system to recover energy currently lost in braking trains. The
flywheel system will store energy when a train comes to a stop and
will return it to the tracks when the train accelerates out of the
station leading to a 20% reduction in energy purchases for the supported
track. Other benefits are reduced impact on customers who share the
power source with the trains and potential to alleviate distribution
congestion on the San Francisco peninsula if more units are deployed.
This work will help showcase near commercial electric energy storage
devices that can demonstrate cost benefits for electric energy consumers.
Upon completion, the three projects will mark a major milestone in demonstrating
that energy storage can be an important component in a stable and effective
electricity grid.
