SRP starts pilot program for long-duration solar battery use - The Arizona Republic

SRP starts pilot program for long-duration solar batteries in Arizona

SRP starts pilot program for long-duration solar battery use
Russ Wiles

Electric utility Salt River Project is entering into a pilot program to install batteries for storing solar power and releasing the energy over a longer-than-normal period during night hours when the sun isn't shining.

SRP's deal with Germany's CMBlu Energy calls for the latter to install, own and operate batteries at the utility's Copper Crossing Energy and Research Center in Florence. The 5-megawatt batteries capable of 10 hours of energy release will use CMBlu technology that doesn't require lithium, the mining and use of which causes pollution.

CMBlu's batteries use a non-flammable mixture of solid electrolyte and water-based electrolytes with high energy density and performance. The materials can be fully recycled, are free of rare metals and will be housed inside buildings, the companies said.

CMBlu expects its battery system will be able to store and deliver energy for two to three times longer than traditional lithium-ion batteries, which typically release energy over about four hours.

The batteries will store energy for SRP customers during daylight hours and return it to the grid throughout the night. The project will generate and store enough electricity from nearby solar panels to power 1,125 average-sized homes for 10 hours.

"This resource will supplement SRP’s power system, helping provide stored power for longer periods, especially in times of fluctuating, high-energy demand from customers," said Jim Pratt, SRPs CEO, in a prepared statement. "It will be a helpful addition to SRP’s significant number of renewable resources and storage projects, which generally only store energy for up to four hours."

This pilot project, called Desert Blume, is part of an approved third phase of continued development at Copper Crossing. In the first phase, SRP will add two flexible natural gas turbines with a total output of less than 100 MW. In the second phase, the utility will add solar generation capable of creating up to 55 MW of energy.

Construction at Copper Crossing is slated to begin in early 2025, with the pilot program expected to be operational by December of that year.

In July, CMBlu announced the first customer deployment of its battery systems with Burgenland Energie in Austria, and the company will provide systems for a pilot program in Milwaukee with power utility WEC Energy.

Reach the writer at russ.wiles@arizonarepublic.com.