September 11, 2015—In the second quarter of 2015, the U.S. energy storage market had its best quarter in two and a half years, installing 40.7 megawatts (MW) of capacity, according to the Energy Storage Association (ESA). While the figure is a nine-fold increase year-over-year, this increase was mainly driven by one large utility project, although underlying trends show great promise for other markets. The ESA projects that 2015 will be the biggest year yet for energy storage, with a total of 220 MW planned or already deployed.
Q2 results were boosted by a 31.5 MW storage project installed by Invenergy at its Grand Ridge Energy Center, comprised of a 210 MW wind farm, a 20 MW solar project, and an existing 1.5 MW energy storage unit.
The current results largely reflect a 31.5-MW storage project installed in Illinois by Invenergy, which plans to install a similar project in West Virginia later this year. The Illinois project is located about 80 miles southwest of Chicago at Invenergy’s Grand Ridge Energy Center, which is comprised of a 210 MW wind farm, a 20 MW solar project, and an existing 1.5 MW energy storage unit. The company believes that energy storage “holds the potential to be a transformative force in the evolution of the electric grid.”
Such installations on the utility’s side of the power meter accounted for 87% of storage deployments in the second quarter, which was the strongest since the energy storage market’s best quarter ever–the fourth quarter of 2012, when Duke Energy brought the 36 MW Notrees project online in west Texas with the help of U.S. Department of Energy funding.
The Notrees Project is considered America’s largest battery storage project at a wind farm. It comprises large-scale batteries capable of storing electricity produced by Duke Energy’s 153-MW Notrees wind farm that enable the wind-generated energy to be used when it is needed most – not just when the wind is blowing.
The Notrees Project comprises large-scale batteries capable of storing electricity produced by Duke Energy’s 153-MW wind farm that enable the wind-generated energy to be used when it is needed most.
Duke Energy expects the development of this advanced technology to help the company expand the use of renewable energy, better integrate it into the power grid, and become even more efficient at serving customers, increasing both the value and practical application of variable renewable energy sources.
The ESA also sees each market segment more than doubling on an annual basis. For example, the nonresidential market had its best quarter ever, installing 4.9 MW of energy storage. Much of this growth happened in California, where the state’s Self-Generation Incentive Program provides incentives for advanced energy storage installations. In addition, the residential market posted a 61% increase compared to the first quarter of 2015.
For more information, see the ESA’s U.S. Energy Storage Monitor Q2 2015: Executive Summary Web page.
