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. Additionally, they would be urged to solicit competitive bids for “non-wires alternatives” — such as storage or demand response — when their lines need upgrades.
Grid resiliency means hardening regional power systems in the face of extreme weather or natural disasters, and such efforts must focus on “prevention, survivability, and recovery,” according to the Electric Power Research Institute.
The Baker administration in December awarded $20 million to help kick-start energy storage in Massachusetts.
The University of Massachusetts Amherst received one of the largest awards, $1.14 million, to install a lithium ion battery system in its energy supply system. Separately, Holyoke Gas & Electric built the state’s largest utility-scale storage system at its Mount Tom Solar plant.
Nationwide, the energy storage industry hopes to deploy 35 gigawatts of capacity by 2035.
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