tesla gives the california power grid a battery boost - storage battery

Just off the highway in Southern California, 396 refrigerator
The size stack of Tesla batteries wrapped in white metal is hastily erected, shouldering a new mission: sucking power from the grid during the day and feeding it back into the system as needed, especially at night.
The device, capable of powering around 15,000 households within four hours, is part of an emergency response to the projected energy shortage caused by the huge leakage of natural gas storage facilities.
The project was officially launched on Monday, but started operations at the end of last year, an important and surprising demonstration of how utilities use a large number of batteries to replace traditional power plants.
It also shows how fast Tesla is transforming itself from a luxury electric vehicle manufacturer to a multi-faceted cleaning-energy company.
"By 2020, I had relatively limited expectations for the battery industry," said Michael J . "
Picker, chairman of the California utilities commission.
"I don't think it will really accelerate and start to penetrate the grid or the world of transportation for some time to come.
Once again, the pace of technology has obviously outpaced our pace of regulation.
"These batteries are manufactured, shipped, installed and ready to run in about three months and are connected to the distribution line of the Milla Roman substation in an industrial zone in Ontario, California, Southern California, Edison
40 miles east of Los Angeles.
Tesla has developed or won contracts for similar facilities elsewhere in California, as well as some other US states and overseas.
Although the company has imported some components, it now manufactures and assembles all the major components of each battery assembly, called Powerpack, at a gigabit factory outside Nev Sparks.
"Basically, we can go down a board and install the basic line, but each of our Powerpacks is very self-contained.
"Said J. B.
Tesla chief technology officer Straubel.
All batteries, cooling and safety systems and other equipment are in the housing and can be loaded onto the delivery truck.
"Our vehicle work has laid a great foundation for this . "Straubel said.
"We don't start from scratch.
"The Mira Loma project is coming together very quickly, in part because California's utilities already have several battery storage projects in progress, some involving Tesla.
As the country actively uses renewable energy, especially solar energy, to cope with climate change, the traditional mode of supply and demand has been subverted.
California's energy glut during the day is possible because many of its solar panels are producing energy, but as the sun sets, it is precisely when demand rises that supply drops sharply, as residents go home to use electrical appliances and charge cars more and more.
The state's aging nuclear power plants have been shut down or are being phased out, putting more pressure on utilities to find other ways to power.
Utilities executives say storage is a natural solution that helps smooth changes in power flow for roof customers, when solar power comes off and traditional factories haven't filled the gap yet. Ronald O.
Nichols, president of Southern California Edison, said the company is looking for more ways to use this energy rather than reducing the production of solar energy, "which makes no greenhouse-gas-Restore sense.
He added that by 2024, the California system expects too much energy for at least a few hours a day, "We want to find a way to use this energy effectively, battery storage is certainly part of it.
"After the sudden shutdown of the San onuclear nuclear power plant in 2013, utility demand for storage was amplified.
Fill this gap
And fulfill the national authorization to increase storage in its energy portfolio-
Several battery storage contracts have been awarded by utilities.
When the scale of the 2015 leakage at the Aliso Canyon gas storage facility in the San Fernando Valley became clear, the Commission began to streamline the process of the storage project.
This led to the Tesla project at the Mira Loma substation, as well as the power purchase agreement for similar battery projects installed by AltaGas on the Pomona natural gas generator.
As part of the response, the large battery installation of another independent regional utility, San Diego gas power, called AES, is about to be fully operational in escondition.
Utility executives say that while battery storage is still expensive, its price can be comparable to the price of a natural gas plant known as peakers, which can rise and fall quickly to cope
Neither they nor Tesla executives will disclose the price of the project, but because Southern California is limited by geographical and strict environmental regulations when building power plants, the project is particularly attractive.
Taking into account the land cost and air quality requirements limiting the number of hours the plant operates, Sir
Nichols of Edison, Southern California, said it might be expensive to build a gas plant.
The battery is more flexible and does not require the same infrastructure as conventional generators, including water and fuel supply pipelines, avoiding the need for a long environmental review and licensing process.
As a result, energy analysts say battery installations may become more common, whether to change the number of power supply options to improve reliability or as part of getting rid of fossil fuels to meet climate and other environmental goals.
Swami Venkataraman said that as an early recipient of renewable technologies, particularly solar, California has been willing to pay high prices, which in turn helped lower prices in other markets, senior vice president of Moody's Investor Services, he analyzed the Utilities Department.
He cited similarities in how the state approached storage.
"California is looking to the future, and in the future storage will start a cycle that is getting cheaper and cheaper," he said . ".
"In the long run, their demand will be reduced --
Maybe not-
For new natural gas generation.