This site will be used to test energy storage methods for OUC’s solar power operations.
When the sun is shining, solar panels convert that clean energy into electricity. But the Sunshine State is not always sunny. In fact, Central Florida records three out of every four days as cloudy or partly cloudy days each year, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
That’s why batteries, which can store excess electricity collected by solar panels for later use, are critical to ensuring a continuous and reliable power supply on cloudy days, during storms, and at night.
As part of a pilot program, a 4-megawatt, 8-megawatt-hour battery energy storage system (BESS) was installed at OUC Substation 29 in east St. Cloud. Following a month-long commissioning process, members of OUC’s Emerging Technologies team, in collaboration with Operations, will use this as a test site to determine the optimal and most economical ways to incorporate batteries into OUC’s overall power grid. Substation 29 is connected to transmission lines that support the solar array at the Harmony Solar Energy Center, which can generate up to 74.5 megawatts.
Mark Andersen, Project Manager with OUC’s Emerging Technologies team, is overseeing deployment and testing of the system, which represents a $5 million investment and is part of $90 million OUC has committed to investing in energy storage technologies.
“With this pilot program, we are seeking to learn the best ways to operate battery systems in tandem with solar,” says Andersen. “Our goal is to use this knowledge to inform future battery storage and solar installations.”
Energy storage like this is critical to OUC’s efforts to improve the reliability of solar power as the utility moves towards its goal of net zero CO2 emissions by 2050, with interim goals of 50% by 2030 and 75% by 2040. The new BESS, built by Oregon-based Powin and installed by Massachusetts-based renewable energy asset operator Ameresco Inc., will be able to store enough energy to power the equivalent of approximately 2,500 homes for up to two hours
“Florida is very limited in renewable energy sources,” explains Justin Kramer, Director of Emerging Technologies and Data Analytics. “Without geothermal, tidal or consistent wind, solar is the best resource for the Sunshine State. But really Florida is the partly cloudy state, with 277 cloudy days a year. Clouds and nighttime require us to adopt storage solutions to maintain the reliability that our customers have come to know and appreciate.”
