Dive Brief:
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Stem is developing a fleet of aggregated energy storage installations in Texas that could have a capacity of up to 1 MWh.
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Initially, Austin Energy will use the fleet to determine how rapidly the resources can respond to an aggregator’s signal to dispatch and provide grid response services.
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The project is one phase of a larger grant from the Department of Energy’s Sustainable and Holistic Integration of Energy Storage and Solar Photovoltaics (SHINES) program that aims to reduce the cost solar-plus-storage projects to below $0.14/kWh.
Dive Insight:
Austin Energy has become a test bed for energy storage. Earlier this week, Younicos signed an agreement with Austin Energy for a 1.75 MW, 3.2 MWh energy storage system as part of the DOE’s SHINES program.
Like the Stem project, the Younicos system will help Austin Energy maintain grid reliability while accommodating high levels of solar PV penetration.
Austin Energy’s $4.3 million SHINES grant is the largest of six projects that have won a total of $18 million of awards the DOE program. The utility must also meet its renewable energy target of 55% by 2025.
“We think all of Texas will be watching to see how aggregated energy storage can cost effectively deliver multiple values to customers, utilities, and grid operators alike,” John Carrington, CEO of Stem, said in a statement.