NEC to Install Energy Storage System in California

NEC Corporation today announced that NEC Energy Solutions, a leading energy storage system manufacturer, has been awarded a contract to supply a 2.5MW, 3.9MWh GSS™ to one of the largest electric utilities in the United States. As a key part of a distributed energy storage integration program, the GSS, or Grid Storage Solution, will be used to support analysis of the value streams that energy storage can provide to utilities, ratepayers, and other involved parties.

The program will explore how energy storage can support distribution circuits in the utility’s diverse service territory. During the program, the GSS will not only be used to limit loading of the line under dynamic load scenarios, but also be capable of providing voltage regulation. In addition, the deployment of this GSS aligns with the utility’s requirement to procure energy storage as set forth by the California Public Utility Commission’s energy storage mandate.

“When we learned that this customer needed an energy storage solution to support everything from voltage regulation and renewable integration to distribution line support, we knew we had what they needed. The GSS is ideally suited for the job,” said Bud Collins, CEO of NEC Energy Solutions. “This project gives us a strong start with our first official grid storage award since we became NEC Energy Solutions in May, and there are more on the horizon.”

For this project, NEC Energy Solutions will supply a building-based LD (Long Duration) type GSS, which will be located in a distribution circuit in southern California. To support the LD GSS, NEC Energy Solutions will provide a purpose-built facility to house the storage solution. The custom building will be designed by NEC Energy Solutions to maximize the value of the battery configuration by not only hosting the LD GSS, but also integrating the solution with client power delivery systems.

The LD GSS, which utilizes lithium ion cell technology, is a flexible modular energy storage platform which can be packaged in standardized 20-foot, 40-foot, and 53-foot long containers, or installed in either pre-existing or custom-built buildings to fit the available space. This flexibility allows installation almost anywhere and provides energy storage with a superior combination of service life, power output, safety, and reliability.