Encore Renewable Energy has energized South Street Storage, a 2-MW, 8-MWh utility-scale battery energy storage system, located next to the 5-MWAC South Street Solar project in Middlebury, Vermont. South Street Storage is Encore’s first energy storage project and will provide vital demand mitigation services and cost savings to Green Mountain Power (GMP) and its customers.
Credit: Encore Renewable Energy
“The past few years of intense storms and record heat have demonstrated the importance of a dependable electric grid, and we need more energy storage for that,” said Chad Farrell, founder and co-CEO of Encore. “Thankfully there are leading utilities like Green Mountain Power, who have long understood the value of locally sited energy storage for keeping our electricity supply clean and affordable.”
The lithium-ion battery systems for this project were provided by KORE Power. KORE, a domestic manufacturer of battery energy storage systems, built the units installed by Encore at its facility in Waterbury. KORE’s operation’s team will also be coordinating with Encore to monitor the system’s performance.
“The South Street Storage project is a model of well-orchestrated grid modernization that is made possible when a developer, a manufacturer and a utility share the vision of delivering safe, reliable, clean power to customers,” said Jay Bellows, CEO of KORE Power. “Through this coordination the teams from Encore, KORE and Green Mountain Power will deliver affordable power that is there when it is needed.”
The 2-MW energy system at South Street adds to GMP’s growing network of stored energy, now over 75 MW, making it Vermont’s largest source of dispatchable power. The storage system joins the South Street Solar project in supporting Middlebury College’s renewable energy goals.
“When Vermont organizations work together, great things happen for communities and customers. This project will help deliver lower power costs during expensive peaks, by sending stored clean Vermont energy back to the grid when it’s needed most,” said Mari McClure, GMP’s President and CEO.
As the climate continues to warm, peak demand events like June’s heat wave will become more prevalent; energy storage provides the ability to store extra energy from times when electricity demand is lower to utilize it when it’s most needed.
News item from Encore Renewable Energy
