California’s Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) is proposing to add nearly 1,600 MW/6,400 MWh of battery energy storage across nine projects in the state.

The energy storage projects would come online between 2023 and 2026, coinciding with the expected retirements of gas plants in southern California and PG&E’s Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant.

Like other investor-owned utilities in the state, PG&E needs to comply with a 2021 California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) order directing the state’s electric companies to collectively procure 11.5 GW of new resources.

The order requires electric companies to begin delivering power to customers incrementally: at least 2,000 MW by August 1, 2023; an additional 6,000 MW by June 1, 2024, an additional 1,500 MW by June 1, 2025; and an additional 2,000 MW by June 1, 2026.

At least 2,500 MW of the resources procured between 2023 and 2025 must be emission-free to replace the current supply of energy from Diablo Canyon when it retires in 2025.

The nine stand-alone storage projects proposed by PG&E all would feature lithium-ion battery technology, each with four hours of storage. The proposed projects are:

  • Developer: Terra-Gen, LLC
  • Name: Beaumont Energy Storage
  • Output/Capacity: 100 MW/400 MWh
  • Location: Beaumont, California
  • Scheduled to be online by: August 2023
  • Developer: Terra-Gen, LLC
  • Name: Edwards Sanborn Energy Storage project
  • Output/Capacity: 169 MW/676 MWh
  • Location: Mojave, California
  • Scheduled to be online by: August 2023
  • Developer: Terra-Gen, LLC
  • Name: Canyon Country Energy Storage project
  • Output/Capacity: 80 MW/320 MWh
  • Location: Santa Clarita, California
  • Scheduled to be online by: October 2023
  • Developer: Vistra Corp.
  • Name: MOSS350 (Moss Landing Energy Storage 3)
  • Output/Capacity: 350 MW/1,400 MWh
  • Location: Moss Landing, California
  • Scheduled to be online by: August 2023
  • Developer: Strata Clean Energy, LLC
  • Name: Inland Empire Energy Storage project
  • Output/Capacity: 100 MW/400 MWh
  • Location: Rialto, California
  • Scheduled to be online by: April 2024
  • Developer: NextEra Energy
  • Name: Corby Energy Storage
  • Output/Capacity: 125 MW/500 MWh
  • Location: Vacaville, California
  • Scheduled to be online by: June 2024
  • Developer: NextEra Energy
  • Name: Kola Energy Storage project
  • Output/Capacity: 275 MW/1,100 MWh
  • Location: Tracy, California
  • Scheduled to be online by: June 2024
  • Developer: Arevon Energy
  • Name: Nighthawk Storage Project
  • Output/Capacity: 300 MW/1,200 MWh
  • Location: Poway, California
  • Scheduled to be online by: June 2024
  • Developer: Origis USA, LLC
  • Name: Caballero Energy Storage project
  • Output/Capacity: 99.7 MW/398.8 MWh
  • Location: Nipomo, California
  • Scheduled to be online by: June 2024

Power Engineering reached out to the developer of each project to learn more about the technologies involved and who is providing the lithium-ion batteries. A PG&E spokesperson indicated that battery manufacturers’ names may be confidential.

“We continue to evaluate design options for Phase III as well as potential partners for the project and look forward to providing more information once those plans are confirmed,” said a Vistra Corp. spokesperson in an email.

“We have no comment at this time related to the technology provider,” an Origis spokesperson said.

The nine agreements followed PG&E launching a competitive request for offers in response to the CPUC June 2021 order. Through the RFO process, PG&E received 73 offers consisting of 223 offer variations from 29 counterparties, according to filings sent to state regulators.

If approved by state regulators, the nine projects would bring PG&E’s total battery energy storage system capacity to more than 3,330 MW by 2024. As of now, more than 600 MW of new battery storage capacity has been connected to California’s electric grid including:

-400 MW Vistra Moss Landing Battery Energy Storage Facility in Monterey County, commissioned August 2021

-63 MW NextEra Blythe BESS located in Riverside County, commissioned August 2021

-50 MW Gateway BESS located in San Diego, commissioned July 2021 PG&E anticipates an additional 1,100 MW of storage capacity (of the 3,330 MW contracted) to come online in 2022 and 2023 including PG&E’s Elkhorn Battery – a 182.5 MW BESS comprised of Tesla Megapacks – which is anticipated to be operational before summer 2022, pending final testing and certification.

On Sept. 4, 2021, Vistra’s Moss Landing facility was forced offline when an unspecified number of batteries overheated. In Late January, the company released its investigative findings and corrective actions it plans to take, which you can read about here.

PG&E said plans to issue another competitive solicitation for resources later this year, to deliver energy by June 1, 2025 and June 1, 2026.