SoCal Edison to build 20 MW storage project at Pomona gas plant site
California utilities are racing to bring storage online, and the AltaGas Pomona Energy Storage Project would be one of the largest projects in the nation. State regulators are pushing utilities to procure storage in efforts to avoid power outages as well as integrate more renewable energy. And the SCE contract is a big move for AltaGas, as it looks to provide more energy solutions in the state.
“Winning this RFO represents an important next step as we continue to advance our California power strategy,” AltaGas President and CEO David Harris said in a statement. “Adding battery storage to our California power portfolio proves the versatility of our asset base and greatly enhances the value of what we can offer the California and Desert Southwest markets through integrated energy centers providing clean reliable electricity.”
The AltaGas announcement comes a week after the California Public Utilities Commission approved two energy storage projects proposed by San Diego Gas & Electric. AES will construct 37.5 MW of storage projects on utility-owned property in Escondido and El Cajon, Calif.
​Under the terms of a 10-year agreement with SCE, AltaGas will provide SCE with 20 MW of resource adequacy capacity for a 4-hour duration or the equivalent of 80 MWh of energy discharging capacity. In return, AltaGas will receive fixed monthly resource adequacy payments under the agreement and will “retain the rights to earn additional revenue from the energy from the lithium-ion batteries,” the company said.
