Share this
Batteries Emerging as the Future of the Grid
by Gaby Flores on Sep 02, 2021
The battery solution
If you read last week’s blog - The CAISO Dilemma - you’re aware that one of the challenges facing California is that intermittent renewable generation is often unavailable during times of peak demand - primarily, in the evenings on particularly hot days. Energy storage systems - specifically batteries - are one of the proposed solutions to this challenge in California, and to the intermittent generation problem in general. According to a report by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), energy storage costs declined 72% between 2015 and 2019.
Interested in learning more about intermittent generation and other generators? Check out our blog on Electricity Generation Basics.
The big question
As storage costs decrease, large-scale batteries are becoming more prevalent. The number of large-scale battery storage systems operating in the U.S. increased 28% in 2019, and the trend is set to continue according to the EIA’s report. As these storage systems begin to operate throughout the U.S. the big question is how they will affect the markets. If batteries are able to successfully serve load during times of peak demand, will they ultimately cause prices and volatility to decrease? How will these systems impact how thermal units and peaking plants operate? How will these first movers operate in order to maximize their return on investment (ROI)?
A rapidly changing grid
These will all be important questions for power market participants, asset owners, and operators to investigate and begin to answer, as they build their strategies going forward. According to Utility Dive, CAISO’s storage sector manager, Gabe Murtaugh, stated that as CAISO ramps up to thousands of megawatts of storage, it will impact the market and we will begin to see differences in how the market operates (Balaraman 2021). With the EIA reporting that the combined capacity of U.S. battery storage projects might grow more than ten times the 2019 figure between 2021 and 2023, contributing an additional 10,000 megawatts, it is clear that batteries are here to stay, and entering nodal markets at rapid speed.
Batteries are sure to influence how the grid operates. CAISO is already seeing evidence of storage resources’ ability to behave as predicted and shift energy production to the times of the day when it is needed most (Balaraman 2021). As this occurs, it will be imperative that market participants, asset operators, and asset developers get ahead of the curve and the competition. Participants who investigate and educate themselves on the likely impacts that increased storage capacity will have on the grid will be best positioned to succeed and thrive in the markets.
Investigating the grid of the future
Organizations can begin to do this with the utilization of datasets and tools that expose exactly how storage assets are currently operating on a day-to-day basis. Pairing this data with comprehensive nodal market data allows one to develop a full picture of how batteries are affecting the markets as a whole. Yes Energy’s newest solution, Transaction View, paired with Yes Energy’s extensive ISO nodal market data solutions, allows businesses to do exactly this. Transaction View utilizes data from the Federal Energy Regulatory Committee’s (FERC’s) Electric Quarterly Reports (EQR) across U.S. power markets and allows for easy and accurate analysis of more wholesale electricity market data than ever before. This data is particularly important as the power industry evolves, and participants need to develop flexible and agile strategies. Transaction View delivers transparency to electricity market transactions and, alongside Yes Energy’s existing data solutions, it gives you all of the data and information you need to make educated and informed decisions in these rapidly evolving markets with the capability to power your business. To receive a complimentary Transaction View consultation and demo, click here.
Share this
- Industry News & Trends (73)
- Data, Digital Transformation & Data Journey (45)
- Market Events (30)
- Market Driver Alerts - Live Power (23)
- ISO Changes & Expansion (21)
- Renewable Energy (17)
- Energy Storage / Battery Technology (16)
- Power Markets 101 (9)
- Risk Management (7)
- Utilities (7)
- Financial Transmission Rights (5)
- Live Power (3)
- Snowflake (3)
- PeopleOps (2)
- September 2023 (1)
- August 2023 (6)
- July 2023 (2)
- June 2023 (2)
- May 2023 (6)
- April 2023 (3)
- March 2023 (2)
- February 2023 (2)
- January 2023 (5)
- December 2022 (2)
- November 2022 (1)
- October 2022 (3)
- September 2022 (5)
- August 2022 (5)
- July 2022 (3)
- June 2022 (3)
- May 2022 (1)
- April 2022 (3)
- March 2022 (3)
- February 2022 (4)
- January 2022 (4)
- December 2021 (2)
- November 2021 (4)
- October 2021 (4)
- September 2021 (4)
- August 2021 (3)
- July 2021 (5)
- June 2021 (5)
- May 2021 (3)
- April 2021 (3)
- March 2021 (4)
- February 2021 (3)
- December 2020 (3)
- November 2020 (4)
- October 2020 (3)
- September 2020 (5)
- August 2020 (2)
- July 2020 (2)
- June 2020 (1)
- May 2020 (9)
- April 2020 (1)
- November 2019 (1)
- August 2019 (2)
- June 2019 (2)
- May 2019 (2)
- January 2019 (1)
- December 2018 (1)