Grid resiliency and energy storage bill passes Massachusetts House
BOSTON — Clean energy storage could get a boost under grid resiliency legislation approved by the Massachusetts House of Representatives on Thursday.
Among other things, H.4739 instructs the Department of Energy Resources to study the feasibility of mobile battery storage systems. Such systems could take the place of downed substations in an emergency, said Rep. Thomas A. Golden Jr., D-Middlesex, chairman of the Joint Committee on Energy, Telecommunications, and Energy.
Around 450,000 households lost power during coastal storms in March, Golden said from the floor, highlighting the need for Massachusetts to “move into the future.”
Energy storage can shave peak power demand, relieve congestion on the grid, save money, and help reduce emissions, Golden said.
The House bill creates an Energy Storage Innovation Research Institute, and establishes a Center for Clean Transportation to conduct research and development.
On the resiliency side, it creates new requirements for utilities to assess and improve their transmission and distribution systems.
The utilities would have to submit annual reports including “heat maps” that show areas of load and congestion on the grid….
