The cost of energy storage has fallen to the point where the power generation industry is moving from demonstration projects to full deployment. Driven by demand and a federal order designed to nurture broader adoption of storage capabilities, practical applications of energy storage are emerging that are competitive with conventional solutions.
In addition, continued annual reductions in the cost for storage will reveal more and more applications where energy storage makes economic sense. A great example can be found in the performance optimization of gas turbines.
In recently establishing Order 841 to integrate energy storage into the power market, FERC declared the order would “enhance competition and promote greater efficiency in the nation’s electric wholesale markets, and will help support the resilience of the bulk power system.” While many initially ascribed storage’s primary value to the capture of renewable energy and subsequent grid resilience, new scenarios are emerging that pair storage with conventional gas turbine generation to deliver more rapid response, milder ramp rates, fewer starts and stops, and emissions reductions.
In a way, gas turbines and renewables are beginning to solve each other’s problems.
Gas turbines have long played a central role in helping supply meet demand, given their ability to quickly flex up or down to demand peaks and dips. But their efficiency is diminished when running under or above optimal load. Meanwhile, the rise of renewable energy sources promises to reduce our carbon footprint, but they also carry hazards for utility managers because their
variability and intermittency complicate loadbalancing and grid-planning efforts.
Enter the battery storage-augmented gas turbine, in which storage performs as a kind of reserve that springs to life to smooth and optimize turbine performance levels.
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