California PUC approves 462 MW of energy storage capacity for SCE
Southern California Edison (SCE) will gain 462 MW of energy storage capacity between August 2023 and June 2024, thanks to the approval of five new contracts by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) last week.
While the contracts total 497 MW worth of capacity, SCE’s share will be 462 MW, which CPUC believes will help the company meet summer demand next year and address larger mid-term reliability needs.
In ongoing efforts to ensure Californians’ energy reliability, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved energy storage contracts for Southern California Edison (SCE) to come online from August 2023 through June 2024. It will also expand SCE’s portion of the 11,500 MW of clean energy capacity ordered by CPUC last year as part of an integrated resource planning (IRP) proceeding. All load service entities must procure 11,500 MW of new capacity over four years.
“These five storage projects show important, continued progress in our transition to clean energy, adding to the unprecedented amount of storage we’ve deployed over the past two years and further enhancing system reliability,” Commissioner Clifford Rechtschaffen said.
The contract partners selected for the development of either new or expanding stand-alone lithium-ion battery projects include AES (82 MW), Calpine (40 MW), LS Power (75 MW), and Tenaska/Falcon Energy for two separate projects amounting to a total of 300 MW. SCE selected all through a competitive procurement process.
“The 500 MW of storage we approved today, fast-tracked by SCE, will significantly enhance our ability to manage reliability at net peak,” Commissioner Genevieve Shiroma said. “These five energy storage projects are essential for our path to being less reliant on fossil fuels.”
