A battery energy storage project in Maryland is set to launch early in 2022, and the companies involved are exploring how the program can be a part of the region’s ancillary services.
The Elk Neck Battery Storage Pilot Program is a virtual power plant with a planned capacity of .55 megawatts and 2.2 megawatt hours. It is being built by distributed energy resource (DER) company Sunverge and distributed by Delmarva Power, which serves areas of Delaware and Maryland.
The companies will work with PJM Interconnection to expand the offering in the company’s territory, which covers 13 states and Washington, D.C. It would be the first residential virtual power plant project in PJM’s territory.
The project, which is currently being offered to customers in Elk Neck, Maryland, will demonstrate how a multiservice VVP can work in ancillary markets FERC Order 2222 and add additional value to DERs, the companies say.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission introduced Order 2222 in September 2020 to allow DERs to participate along traditional power markets, allowing organized wholesale markets new sources of energy and grid services. The hopes of the order are to lower costs, increase competition, provide additional grid flexibility and resilience and enhance innovation in the electric power industry.
“The Elk Neck Battery Storage Pilot Project will allow aggregated DER to test the markets under real-world market conditions, providing lessons for PJM and all its stakeholders in alignment with the spirit of FERC Order 2222,” says Eric Hsia, senior manager of applied innovation at PJM.
As part of the Elk Neck Battery Storage Pilot Program, Delmarva is offering up to 110 residential battery systems at no cost to customers in the Maryland community. The systems allow Delmarva to store the energy for later use, which it says will improve resiliency in case of outages.
The battery systems will also support the local energy grid. Delmarva says when needed the batteries can feed power to that grid, which can be distributed to homes or businesses and support the overall reliability of the grid. Sunverge will install, operate, maintain and own the battery systems, which are expected to be in place by February 2022.
The Maryland Public Service Commission approved this program in November 2020 as part of the Maryland Energy Storage Pilot Program and it has received regulatory approval in the state.
As battery storage becomes a more necessary element of power distribution, Sunverge recently announced another virtual power plant project in California. That one will incorporate intelligent load control with solar and energy storage capabilities and provide grid services to 100 homes in northern California.
