SRP’S first standalone battery-based energy storage project will be built at 54th Street and West Pecos Road in West Chandler, according to a May 31 announcement.
The 10-megawatt, four-hour-duration energy storage solution, to be supplied by Fluence, is projected to provide peaking capacity that will inject power into the grid during high-peak demand periods for SRP customers.
West Chandler-based Mortenson Construction, with experience in the energy storage market, will be performing the engineering, procurement and construction for the project.
Officials said the contract was procured as part of an SRP initiative to learn more about grid-scale battery storage to help prepare the utility to implement battery storage technology at an even larger scale in the future.
Mike Hummel, SRP’s general manager and chief executive officer, hailed the project as a step toward future proficiency.
“Energy storage is already providing a wealth of services to central Arizona’s grid through other deployments, from supporting the growth of renewables to boosting reliability on transmission and distribution grids,” he said. “This latest investment will add much-needed efficiency and value for our more than 1 million electric consumers.”
Under the 20-year agreement, partner AES will provide SRP with the 10-megawatt, 40 megawatt-hour battery-based energy storage system that will be charged by an SRP distribution substation. Fluence’s Advancion energy storage technology platform was selected to meet SRP’s need for an industrial-strength solution with high dependability, reliability and the ability to evolve over long-term operations.
The solution can deliver the energy equivalent to power about 2,400 homes in the Phoenix metropolitan area for up to four hours and will help SRP assess how best to scale up future energy storage projects across its 2,900-square-mile electric service area, Hummel said.
SRP’s new energy storage project marks the latest move to secure resources that enable the integration of more renewables for its electric service area. According to SRP, this comes at a time when Arizona is evaluating steps to transform its energy infrastructure, including proposals for both the largest energy storage target in the United States—3 gigawatts by 2030—and a “clean peak” standard.
Ken Zagzebski, president of AES Southland Energy, said his company is committed to developing solutions which will accelerate a cleaner and greener energy future.
“This project will allow SRP to continue meeting customer demands while also supporting the ongoing integration of renewable power sources.”
As the largest provider of power to this area, SRP officials say they are drawing on both AES’ experience developing energy storage projects across its platform and Fluence’s expertise in designing and deploying energy storage solutions in 16 countries.
Together, SRP, AES and Fluence plan to deliver a long-lasting, reliable energy storage solution for central Arizona’s power grid and SRP’s electric customers.
