RWE continues to expand its renewables portfolio in the US, connecting its first utility scale battery energy storage system (BESS) to the California Independent System Operator. The project, named Fifth Standard, also includes a 150-MWac solar photovoltaic (PV) facility, expected to be completed in August. The BESS facility, at 137-MWac and located in Fresno County, California, is the company’s largest to date.
“Projects like Fifth Standard, with its co-located battery storage system, will become increasingly important to help ensure that as renewables form a bigger part of the energy mix, the electricity produced can be used when it is needed most,” said Mark Noyes, CEO of RWE Clean Energy. “In our case, future growth is backed by project development pipeline comprising more than 24 GW in onshore wind, solar, and battery storage, one of the largest in the US.”
Fifth Standard is located approximately 45 miles southwest of Fresno, California, and will consist of 369 334 PV panels and cover approximately 1600 acres. The solar farm, which will have the capacity to generate enough green electricity to power more than 26 000 homes, supports California’s clean energy goals as the state works toward its net-zero goal of 2045.
The solar panels onsite will leverage a racking system with solar trackers, designed to follow the sun’s path and increase energy output. Excess energy not sent to the grid will be stored in an on-site lithium-ion battery energy storage facility. This storage system, which has up to 548 MWh of capacity, will allow the plant to maximise value by releasing solar energy when electric demand is highest. It can discharge 137 MW into the grid over a four-hour period.
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