Southern California Edison to add 535MW of battery energy storage

Southern California Edison (SCE) will add 535 megawatts of battery energy storage at three of its substations to increase grid reliability for next summer.

This move was made in response to California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s emergency proclamation to accelerate the deployment of new clean energy and storage projects for the summer.

SCE will use land at its existing substations to quickly interconnect the battery storage resources. It has tapped Ameresco to install the battery energy storage systems.

The additional 535 MWs of SCE-owned storage will complement the 1,355 MWs of utility-scale battery storage installed last year. It will bring SCE’s total amount of installed and procured storage capacity to about 2,810 MWs.

“The steps we are taking today will benefit our customers in many ways. They will make the grid more resilient to the effects of extreme weather and will help us continue our progress toward the clean energy future, which is essential to combating climate change,” Kevin Payne, president and CEO of SCE, said. “Electric utilities like SCE have a critical role in integrating renewable energy into the grid. The clean energy then powers clean transportation and buildings, and in doing so, creates clean energy jobs that benefit Southern Californians economically and environmentally.”

By locating the battery storage at these substations, SCE will better meet electricity demands in the San Joaquin Valley, Rancho Cucamonga, and the Long Beach area. The batteries can be charged when electricity demand is lower and store nearly 2,150 megawatt-hours.

These new battery energy storage systems will help California meet its goals of adding 30 GW of utility-scale storage to the grid and 10 GW of storage from distributed energy resources. It will also help Edison International, SCE’s parent company, meet its 2045 net-zero greenhouse gas emissions commitment.