Not exactly AA’s… Shipping-container-sized batteries are increasingly charging up power grids across the US. Companies like Enel North America, Tesla, and Jupiter Power are selling energy storage as a product, letting businesses and grid operators load up on power during off-peak hours, then turn around and sell it at a profit when demand jumps. Now 29 states are planning record #s of installations. Partly driving the surge:
IRAAAs: Last year’s Inflation Reduction Act provided tax credits for investing in stand-alone battery-storage systems (no solar or wind required) — a first.
Charged: Last week the Energy Department announced $325M in funding for long-term energy-storage projects tied to renewables in 17 states.
Batteries not included… As power grids in the US are repeatedly taxed by extreme weather — exacerbated by the climate crisis — massive batteries have started to fill the energy gaps. When sweltering heat roasted Texas last summer, big batteries helped the Lone Star State dodge at least one night of rolling blackouts. As of July, Texas had 3.5K megawatts of battery power installed. By the end of next year, it plans to have tripled that. (FYI: 1.5K megawatts of battery storage will power ~600K homes during peak hours.)
Patchwork problems need patchwork solutions… Natural disasters affect energy grids in all kinds of ways — it’s not just power-hungry AC units blasting nonstop. Last year, 2.6M Florida homes and businesses lost power when Hurricane Ian hit. And last month California fires cut power to an entire county. A variety of responses, including solar, wind, and big-battery storage, will likely be needed in the coming years.