Luminant, a subsidiary of Vistra Energy, recently announced that its Upton 2 battery energy storage system project has finished construction and began operating Dec. 31, 2018.
The battery system, which is the largest energy storage project in Texas and seventh largest in the United States, is located on the site of Luminant’s 180-megawatt Upton 2 Solar Power Plant in Upton County, Texas.
The 10-MW/42-MWh lithium-ion energy storage system captures excess solar energy produced at during the day and can release the power in late afternoon and early evening, when energy demand in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) area is highest. The battery system can also take advantage of low-priced grid power — during times of high wind output, for example — to charge the batteries to be available for higher demand periods.
Vistra is also currently developing the world’s largest battery energy storage project, the 300-MW/1,200-MWh storage system at its Moss Landing Power Plant in California, scheduled for commercial operations in the fourth quarter of 2020.
Other Texas Energy Initiatives
Texas has recently become a hotspot for renewable energy and energy storage projects. In October 2018, NestléWaters North America (NWNA), together with Engie Resources, announced that they signed a renewable energy agreement through which Engie will supply more than 50% of the energy needed for NWNA’s manufacturing and distribution facilities in Texas. With this agreement, NWNA operations in Travis, McLennan, Dallas, and Harris counties will be supplied by renewable wind energy from the Midway Wind Farm in San Patricio County, Texas, supporting Nestlé’s global goal to transition to 100% renewable energy use in its operations.
NWNA will use clean, renewable energy to produce sustainably-sourced beverage options for Texans, including the company’s Ozarka Brand Natural Spring Water and Nestlé Pure Life Purified Water. The agreement will include up to 70,500 renewable energy certificates (RECs) per year from Midway Wind LLC. Based on current electrical usage, by transitioning its electrical power needs to renewable sources, the carbon footprint from the company’s Texas factories will be reduced by more than 44,000 metric tons of CO2 equivalent per year.
And in May 2018, Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) announced it started construction on a comprehensive campus-wide energy efficiency project that will streamline facility operations, encourage sustainable behavior and improve the quality of life for students and staff. The university is partnering with energy and sustainability expert Schneider Electric on the project, which guarantees nearly $15 million in energy savings over the life of the project.
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