A three-month Google-sponsored battery storage pilot in Texas has shown how BESS can improve hourly carbon-free energy matching for data centers. The pilot, led by Quintrace, esVolta, and LevelTen Energy, used batteries to store surplus renewable energy and discharge it during periods of higher fossil-fuel generation. The batteries charged and discharged 9.2GWh during the pilot. Hourly Granular Certificates were used to match solar energy with Google’s consumption, encouraging battery dispatch when renewable supply fell short.
The pilot demonstrated a potential commercial model for battery storage developers while providing a system to track and retire hourly energy certificates. Google contracted battery operators to shift the environmental attributes of energy it already owned, without controlling the batteries or taking market and dispatch risks. Operators retained control of their assets and could respond to energy prices and grid emergencies. esVolta contributed its 240MW/480MWh Anole project in Seagoville and 100MW/200MWh Burksol project in Dickens County, Texas. Quintrace provided the verification software, while LevelTen managed certificate registries and the transaction framework.
"Batteries are set to play an important role in how companies shape their sustainable energy strategies, not only in how the grid is balanced. This pilot shows storage can be reliably dispatched and credited to match clean energy to demand on a granular hourly basis, and that will shape those strategies and attract further investment into storage,” said Devin Hardman, chief commercial officer, esVolta.
"One of the most exciting parts of this pilot was introducing a new price signal and contracting structure to the utility-scale storage market. When delivered at scale, this can support the financing and construction of more batteries and provide operators an incentive to dispatch for the environmental outcomes their customers are asking for, not just the ones that energy markets pay for today," added Jason Tundermann, chief innovation officer, LevelTen Energy.
