Equinor is advancing two merchant energy storage projects totaling 110 MW/220 MWh that will participate in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas markets.
The Texas projects are Equinor’s first U.S. battery storage projects since the Norwegian company bought East Point Energy in July 2022.
East Point expects to begin building the 100-MW/200-MWh Citrus Flatts project in Cameron County this year, with commercial operation anticipated by early 2026, the company said April 11. East Point, based in Charlottesville, Virginia, bought the project from Black Mountain Energy Storage late last year. The project will connect to the AEP Texas system.
Construction has started on the 10-MW/20-MWh Sunset Ridge project in Frio County. East Point expects the project will be online later this year. It will connect to South Texas Electric Cooperative’s distribution network, according to Equinor.
Once operational, the projects will be commercialized by Equinor’s energy trading house, Danske Commodities, the company said. Equinor expects the projects will deliver “real base” project returns toward the higher end of the company’s guided range for renewables of 4% to 8%.
East Point has a 3 GW battery storage project pipeline across the United States, according to Equinor.
“We aim to build a robust and diversified battery storage portfolio, with an opportunity to scale, by leveraging the capabilities of East Point Energy and maximizing synergies with Danske Commodities,” said Christian Lie Hansen, Equinor vice president of onshore renewables Americas.
East Point in January 2023 said it planned to buy standalone energy storage, solar and solar-plus-storage projects, with an initial focus on projects that can reach commercial operation in 2024 and 2025 in the ERCOT, PJM Interconnection, New York Independent System Operator and ISO New England footprints.
The Citrus Flatts and Sunset Ridge projects mark East Point’s entrance into Texas, where battery storage growth is strong. ERCOT has about 6,300 MW of battery storage capacity on its system, according to a report released by the grid operator on April 5.
The storage capacity could grow to 15,600 MW by August 2025 when considering projects with signed interconnection agreements that have posted financial security, the report shows. An additional nearly 2,100 MW of projects that have signed interconnection agreements but have not posted financial security could come online by that date.
