Battery storage capacity in the U.S. increased by 52% year-over-year, to 10.8 GW by the end of the first quarter, according to S&P Global. The added capacity represents a 7% increase from the end of 2022, according to an S&P Global Commodity Insights report using government filings. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas footprint added the most capacity in the first quarter, 498.6 MW, ending the three-month period with 3.3 GW, or 30.5% of U.S. capacity. The California Independent System Operator leads the nation with 5.2 GW, or 48.2% of U.S. capacity.
The California Senate voted 36-0 to approve SB 619, a bill that would expand the California Energy Commission’s authority to certify and prioritize transmission projects on the agency’s agenda. The legislation would build on last year’s AB 205, which authorized the commission to certify and prioritize transmission projects that cost more than $250 million and carry electricity from renewable energy facilities to a system interconnection juncture. SB 619 will next head to California’s Assembly for consideration.
Community solar advocates are applauding the California Senate Budget Committee for proposing a $400 million community solar and storage investment in the updated Budget and Fiscal Review, released on May 25. Governor Newsom and the state Assembly are currently considering their own “budget trailer bills,” which in California refers to bills that implement policies outlined in the state budget. The bills will be negotiated and final versions will be voted on before the legislative session ends in September.
California has hit a new milestone in clean energy. In 2021, 37% of the state’s electricity was generated by renewable sources such as solar and wind — more than double the 16% total in 2012, according to new numbers released last Thursday by the California Energy Commission. More broadly, when nuclear power and hydroelectricity from large dams are included, 59% of California’s electricity now comes from carbon-free sources. The state has a goal of 90% by 2035 and 100% by 2045.
The Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management has advanced two transmission projects proposed by public utility NV Energy that would facilitate more renewable energy development and delivery in Nevada. The agency will start an environmental review for the Greenlink North project, which will span over 450 miles to connect Las Vegas to Reno, and release a draft environmental impact statement for the Greenlink West transmission project, which will cover 232 miles from Ely to Yerington. Once completed, the projects will connect 8 GW of clean energy to the Western power grid.
At the Port of Los Angeles, inside a massive warehouse that now incubates ocean-related research and innovation, a shipping container filled with energy technology will soon be installed on a jetty next to the water. The equipment will connect to floating devices that capture energy as waves move up and down—a system that theoretically could cover as much as 69% of the state’s electricity production if it was scaled up. The Energy Information Administration estimates that wave energy could supply nearly two-thirds of electricity generation in the U.S.
Developer Strata Clean Energy and utility Arizona Public Service (APS) have agreed to a 20-year tolling agreement for a 255 MW/1 GWh battery energy storage system (BESS). The project, called Scatter Wash, will increase clean energy capacity in Phoenix, one of the nation’s fastest growing cities, and stabilize the grid in a drought-prone region.
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