Energy Storage Becoming Easier

Energy storage technologies are becoming cheaper and more effective, and governmental policies are becoming more welcoming toward these projects.

Pacific Gas & Electric is working on providing new energy storage with four battery projects accounting for 2,270 megawatts of electric power. Roy Kuga, vice president, grid integration and innovation, of PG&E said in a statement that energy storage is becoming more important, particularly in California as it moves toward its "clean energy future," adding, "recent decreases in battery prices are enabling energy storage to become a competitive alternative to traditional solutions." As Forbes points out, other storage options include cutting peak load, and storing and injecting solar and wind electrons onto the energy grid.

If the projects are approved by the California Public Utility Commission, the first of them will come online in 2019 while the others would follow a year later. California’s Independent System Operator is incorporating energy storage into mix of generation assets, as PG&E Corp., Sempra Energy and Edison International must collectively buy 1,325 megawatts of energy storage by 2020.

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