Washington Kicks Off Energy Storage Projects
Three new energy storage projects in Washington state will provide much-needed data to strengthen control strategies.
Supported by the state’s Clean Energy Fund, the three projects will contribute to national storage efforts. Two of the three projects include installing all-vanadium redox flow batteries, which were developed by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL); lithium ion battery installations are also planned.
Once the batteries are installed, PNNL will conduct benefits analysis, compile field data to shed more light on long-term performance, design plans for acceptance testing, and build control strategies.
Projects include:
- Avista Utilities of Spokane was awarded $3.2 million. It will install a vanadium redox flow battery from UniEnergy Technologies (which licensed PNNL’s technology) in Pullman, WA, to support Washington State University’s smart campus operations. PNNL and the university are collaborating on a control strategy for this project.
- Puget Sound Energy of Bellevue will use a $3.8 million grant to install a lithium ion battery within its service territory.
- Snohomish County Public Utility District No. 1 of Everett received $7.3 million to install both a flow battery and a lithium ion battery. Its project builds on previous technologies installed with a DOE Smart Grid Investment Grant.