Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies
Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies
Providing global warming solutions for California and the West.
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Large-Scale Energy Storage
Large-scale energy storage projects are fast-starting, quick-ramping, high-capacity resources that can help balance peak loads and enhance clean-energy resources’ ability to meet the needs of the electric grid. Strategic bulk-storage investments will allow us to park surplus renewable energy for times of low supply, and provide flexibility to the grid without burning fossil fuels. CEERT vigorously advocates for large-scale storage at the CAISO and in CPUC procurement rulemakings.
Recent Developments:
CEERT and Clean Power Campaign have continued working to develop public and stakeholder support for long-duration storage (LDS) as a crucial element of California’s clean energy portfolio. As dramatically illustrated during the recent power outages and Stage 2 alert, California needs more LDS, as well as a more balanced renewable portfolio that includes geothermal and regional wind, to ensure grid reliability and affordability. There is strong support for LDS, especially pumped hydro, by key elements of organized labor, but cost allocation and environmental impacts of some projects have resulted in opposition from utility customer groups and some environmentalists.
We are collaborating with the Gates Foundation and some emerging LDS developers on the need to accelerate technology demonstrations and commercialization of these technologies as part of California’s strategy for getting to 100% clean energy and net-zero carbon.
CEERT has been working closely with the joint environmental parties, which include the California Environmental Justice Alliance and Sierra Club, in their campaign to press the CPUC to reduce emissions and phase out gas-fired generation in disadvantaged communities. We are sharing our perspectives with these and other stakeholders on the importance of LDS as a necessary part of gas-reduction strategy. In addition, CEERT is working on a white paper on the total system cost of natural gas and the impacts of gas price spikes on utility rates, which will underscore the need for LDS.