Energy Storage News

Articles in category: Mechanical Storage

1. Virginia Governor Signs 11 Energy Bills, Including Solar, Energy Storage and Pumped Hydro

   Explore PV-Tech May 10 2017 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

   

   Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe signed 11 bills earlier this week that promote solar and other renewable energy resources such as pumped hydro.The bills include proposals for establishing a community solar pilot project, include energy storage in the mission of the state solar development authority and increase the size of clean energy projects eligible for permit from 100MW to 125MW.

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   Mentions: VA Dominion Resources

2. A Longer Look at Long-Duration Energy Storage

   Explore Breaking Energy May 2 2017 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Wind , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

   

   Trying to compare different types of energy storage is a bit like trying to compare the color green to the color blue. Here we take a stab at defining the market potential for long-duration energy storage and offer considerations for potential buyers of this new technology.

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   Mentions: HI U.S. Norway

3. Battery Storage Already Competitive With Pumped Hydro, Says Arena

   Explore CleanTechnica Apr 14 2017 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Wind , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

   

   As Australia’s renewable energy industry awaits the imminent outcome of the South Australian government’s inaugural large-scale energy storage auction, the CFO of the Australian Renewable Energy Agency has described two of the key competing technologies – large-scale battery systems and pumped hydro – as neck and neck on pricing. Speaking at the 2017 Large-Scale Solar Conference co-hosted by RenewEconomy and Informa in Sydney on Monday, ARENA CFO Ian Kay said projects pairing 100MW of renewable energy generation with 100MWh of energy storage were “about equal” in cost.

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   Mentions: Australia

4. Siemens to Supply 12MW Battery Storage Unit for Engie's Hydropower Plant in Germany

   Explore Hydro Industry News Mar 17 2017 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

   

   Engie Deutschland has awarded a contract to Siemens to install a battery storage unit at its pumped storage hydro power station in Kraftwerksgruppe Pfreimd, Germany. The battery storage will offer additional balancing energy for grid stabilization. The decentral battery storage will complement the existing facilities of the pumped storage power station, which already contributes primary and secondary balancing energy as well as tertiary reserve capacity for a secure energy supply. 

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   Mentions: Germany Siemens

5. FERC Issues License for Major Montana Energy Project

   Explore tdworld.com Dec 29 2016 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

   

   The Gordon Butte Pumped Storage Hydro project located in Montana has been issued a 50-year license to construct and operate by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).  Final design is to be completed in 2017 with construction anticipated to begin in 2018. "This is a tremendous milestone achieved by a world-class team including Barnard, SNC-Lavalin and GE Renewables," said Carl Borgquist, President of Absaroka Energy.  "I'm so proud of our team who have worked diligently together to accomplish this significant milestone on the journey to project completion." 

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   Mentions: U.S. GE MT

6. GE Forges Ahead With World’s First Wind + Hydro + Storage Project

   Explore CleanTechnica Nov 14 2016 Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

   

   Trump or no Trump, the global clean energy train has left the station. A case in point is a new wind, hydropower, and energy storage collaboration between US-based GE and Germany’s Max Bögl Wind AG. The project is on track to connect its four wind turbines to the grid next year, with the hydropower component coming online in 2018. The project represents an innovative combo of two different forms of renewable energy with an energy storage bonus thrown in.  

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   Mentions: CA DoE GE

7. Duke Energy to Expand South Carolina Pumped Hydro Facility by 200MW

   Explore Energy Storage News Sep 12 2016 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

   

   US-based power firm Duke Energy plans to increase the energy storage capacity of its Bad Creek pumped storage hydroelectric station by 200MW. The expansion is scheduled to start in 2021, and complete in 2024. The 1,065MW South Carolina facility, the firm’s largest hydroelectric station, was constructed in 1991 to power 850,000 households. Duke Energy said the upgrade will see it power a million homes.

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   Mentions: Duke Energy UK NC

8. Duke Energy Wins New License for Hydroelectric Project

   Explore elp.com Aug 17 2016 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

   

   The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has issued a new 30-year operating license for Duke Energy's Keowee-Toxaway Hydroelectric Project, which will allow the company to continue operating the Jocassee Pumped Storage Hydro Station, Keowee Hydro Station and associated lakes. "The project provides clean, renewable hydroelectric power generation, supports regional public drinking water needs and provides high-quality recreational opportunities for the region," said Steve Jester, Duke Energy's vice president of water strategy, hydro licensing and lake services. "This license ensures the availability of these resources for future generations."

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   Mentions: Duke Energy FERC

9. Study: Even At Current Prices, Energy Storage Makes Economic Sense For Many Renewables Projects

   Explore CleanTechnica Jul 4 2016 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Compressed Air/Gas , Lead , Mechanical Storage

   

   Even at current market prices, various different energy storage options make economic sense for renewable energy projects in some locations, according to new research from MIT. The energy storage options profiled by the study included: battery systems, pumped hydroelectric storage, and compressed air energy storage, amongst others. While these options are economically a good choice in some locations, in other locations, they are not.

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   Mentions: CA TX MIT

10. Scottish Power to Double Size of Cruachan Hydro Power Station to Store Renewable Energy

    Explore Daily Record & Sunday Mail Feb 29 2016 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

    

    SCOTTISH POWER plans to more than double the size of a hydro-electric power station built inside a mountain to help store renewable energy. The firm said a feasibility study shows Cruachan hydro power station in Argyll can be expanded - increasing its current generating capacity from 440mw by 400-600mw. But costs of up to £400 million will halt the development unless ScottishPower can secure a guaranteed floor price for its use from the Government, in return for a cap on profits.

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    Mentions: Scotland Europe UK

11. Spanish Island's Run of Four Hours on 100% Renewables 'Very Significant', Says IRENA Expert

    Explore PV-Tech Storage Aug 26 2015 Solar Photovoltaic , Smart Grid , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

    

    While a project to run a Spanish island off renewable energy which gathered media attention this week might only have successfully met the region's energy demand continuously for four hours, the project is nonetheless "very significant", an expert with the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) has said. Spain’s El Hierro, the most southerly of the Canary Islands, used a combination of only wind, hydro and energy storage to meet the energy needs of all of its 10,000 locals for four hours earlier this month.

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    Mentions: Australia Germany Spain

12. 1.2 MW Energy Storage System To Be Tested In Quebec

    Explore CleanTechnica Jun 10 2015 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

    

    An energy system prototype with a capacity of 1.2 MW and 1.2 MWh will be tested in Quebec this summer. A joint venture was formed by Hydro-Quebec and Sony Corporation to develop and test the system. It was reported that it can store an amount of electricity that is the same as the daily consumption as 23 homes in Quebec.

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    Mentions: Quebec Hydro-Quebec Sony

13. Costa Rica May Need Energy Storage to Keep Getting 100% Renewables Year-Round

    Explore Greentech Media May 15 2015 Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Mechanical Storage

    

    Costa Rica has gotten 100 percent of its electricity from renewables for 100 days straight this year -- thanks to hydro. But as the country strives to become fully carbon-free by 2021, it looks increasingly likely that energy storage will be needed, according to the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE).

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14. Salt Caverns in Eastern Alberta Created to Store Energy

    Explore Journal Of Commerce Jan 29 2015 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Compressed Air/Gas , Mechanical Storage

    

    Calgary-based Rocky Mountain Power has been working on the Alberta Saskatchewan Intertie Storage Project (ASISt) for a couple of years. Company president Jan van Egteren said because of regulatory procedures, it'll likely be another two or three years before the company actually breaks ground on the project. While using salt caverns for storage purposes is not new – they are often used to store liquid petroleum products such as butane, as well as the by products of oil production. What is new is employing the caverns to store wind energy.

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    Mentions: Canada Alberta Saskatchewan

15. Pumped-Storage Dream: Tiny Washington State Utility Makes Big Pitch

    Explore Breaking Energy Dec 26 2014 Wind , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

    

    Randy Knowles figures he’s moving in the right direction. “They used to call me crazy,” he said with a self-effacing chuckle. “Now they’re calling me audacious.” For well over a decade, the Klickitat (Washington) Public Utility District commissioner has promoted building a big pumped storage project off-stream from the Columbia River at the John Day Dam, 110 miles upriver from Portland, Oregon. Now, after years of holding a preliminary permit to study the possibility, the district is moving to obtain a license from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

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    Mentions: CA DoE NV

16. Electrovaya Receives $1.3 Million Grant For Multiple Energy Storage Systems In Canada

    Explore Inside EVs Nov 27 2014 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Smart Grid , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

    

    Canadian lithium-ion battery manufacturer Electrovaya announced that it received a $1.3-million grant from the Ontario Ministry of Energy’s Smart Grid Fund to deliver multiple Intelligent Energy Storage Systems (IESS). According to the short description, multiple IESS will be installed at various locations for Toronto Hydro and London Hydro for applications including phase balancing, infrastructure deferment, electric vehicle charging and general energy storage functions by mid-2015.

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    Mentions: Electrovaya Canada Ontario

17. Alstom to Outfit China's 600-MW Hainan Qiongzhong Pumped-Storage Plant

    Explore Hydro Review Nov 3 2014 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

    

    The Hainan Pumped Storage Power Generation Co. Ltd. awarded a US$71.14 million contract to Alstom to equip China's 600-MW Hainan Qiongzhong pumped-storage hydropower plant. The project will be Hainan Province's first pumped-storage project and is expected to enter commercial operation in December 2017. Alstom will provide three 200 MW turbine units, including pump turbines, motor generators and other equipment, in addition to balance-of-plant, design, delivery and installation supervision services. The equipment will be manufactured at the company's site in Tianjin, China.

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    Mentions: Asia China

18. Storage Pump Station Near Completion in South Africa

    Explore thenewage.co.za Sep 18 2014 Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

    

    Government electricity utility Eskom’s third electricity storage pump station, Ingula pump storage scheme project, situated in the eastern part of the province, has reached its final phase with 85% completion of work to date. The project, located on the boundary between the province and KwaZulu-Natal, is meant to provide additional high power electricity to the country’s grid. The Ingula pump storage station is designed to help with supply power during peak hours when electricity is in high demand. Eskom has only two storage pump stations currently, with one in KwaZulu-Natal and the other in Cape Town.

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19. Philippines Approves Energy Contract for 350-MW SNAP-Ifugao Hydro Complex

    Explore Hydro Review Aug 14 2014 Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

    

    The Philippines Department of Energy has approved a renewable energy service contract with SN Aboitiz Power Group for the proposed three-plant 350-MW SNAP-Ifugao hydroelectric complex in the Philippines. SNAP-Ifugao, a joint venture of SN Power of Norway and Aboitiz Power of the Philippines, is developing the 100-MW Alimit hydro plant, the 240-MW Alimit Pumped-Storage project and the 10-MW Olilicon hydro plant, all in Ilfugao Province.

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    Mentions: Asia DoE Norway

20. Pumped Hydro – the Forgotten Storage Solution

    Explore Renew Economy Jul 4 2014 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Compressed Air/Gas , Mechanical Storage

    

    Storage is in the energy news now, in more places than can be listed. To pick a few, here is recent news from Europe, Tesla, and Queensland.  Everyone is looking to the day when battery technology can economically partner with the popular yet variable renewables: solar PV and wind. But what if today there was a proven way to store vast amounts of energy at capital costs lower than what battery technologists hope they might achieve in 20 years time? A technology with high round-trip efficiency and one heck of a lifespan: 85 years and counting!

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    Mentions: Europe VA Tesla

21. Transportation Electrification and Energy Storage - Hydro-Québec's Research Institute and France's Aquitaine Region Will Work Together to Support Research and Development on Battery Materials

    Explore Market News, Real Jul 4 2014 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Commercial & Industrial , Mechanical Storage

    

    Élie Saheb, Executive Vice President – Technology at Hydro-Québec, and Alain Rousset, President of the Regional Council of Aquitaine (France), today signed an agreement signalling their interest in collaborating in the field of advanced battery materials for transportation electrification. For a number of industrialized countries, energy storage and the development of high-performance, safe and low-cost battery materials are priority issues. 

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    Mentions: France Canada Quebec

22. A Reversible Heat-Pump Promises a Cheap Way to Store Renewable Energy on the Grid

    Explore The Economist Jun 5 2014 Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Compressed Air/Gas , Mechanical Storage

    

    It was while hang-gliding that Jonathan Howes, a British aeronautical engineer, came up with an idea for a meteorologically powered engine to fly him between thermals, the columns of rising air which glider pilots use to gain altitude. It would use a thermal’s updraught to turn a small turbine which captured some of the thermal’s energy, for storage. Then, when in level flight, the pitch of the turbine blades would change and it would become a propeller driven by that stored energy.

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    Mentions: DoE CO Isentropic

23. Establishment of Esstalion Technologies, Inc., a Joint Venture Between Hydro-Québec and Sony

    Explore Market News, Real Jun 2 2014 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Lead , Mechanical Storage

    

    "Esstalion Technologies, Inc." has been newly established by Hydro-Québec, Canada's largest electricity producer, and Sony Corporation ("Sony") as a business venture to research and develop large-scale energy storage systems for power grids.

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    Mentions: Canada Quebec Hydro-Quebec

24. UK Urged to Boost Hydro Storage

    Explore reNews Jun 2 2014 Solar Photovoltaic , Wave, Tidal, Hydro , Utility Grid , Mechanical Storage

    

    The UK and Scottish governments have been urged to set up a new body to examine the potential of hydroelectric pumped storage to boost energy security. Trade body Scottish Renewables said Westminster and Holyrood need to “join forces to drive forward the only electricity storage technology which can operate on a commercial scale”. Initial plans are in place for investment in new and upgraded schemes in Scotland that could unlock more than £1bn of investment and create several hundred jobs during construction and operation. 

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    Mentions: France Scotland Germany

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