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New Hampshire Electric Cooperative and ENGIE North America Announces the Completion of Battery Storage Project

Largest Battery in New Hampshire will bring a more flexible, resilient grid—and savings to Electric Co-op Members

 

HOUSTON, TX and PLYMOUTH, NH – New Hampshire Electric Cooperative (NHEC) announced the completion of its first utility scale energy storage project. The 2.45 megawatt (MW) battery project was developed in partnership with ENGIE North America (ENGIE), a leading provider of energy storage services.  

ENGIE will own and operate the battery unit, which is located on the site of NHEC’s 2 MW solar array in Moultonborough, NH. The battery unit will charge from NHEC’s distribution system during times of low demand and discharge during periods of peak regional electricity use. By discharging during hours of peak electric usage, the battery will save NHEC’s members on regional market and delivery charges while reducing demand on the grid.  

As part of the innovative partnership agreement with ENGIE, NHEC will discharge the battery to supply energy to its members up to 70 times per year. These discharges will be used to reduce NHEC’s transmission charges and regional capacity. The battery project will provide NHEC with insight and direct experience into how battery storage technologies respond to price signals and interact with its electrical system. NHEC estimates these discharges will save its members $2.3 million over the next 12 years.    

“Energy storage is a rapidly evolving technology that has a key place in our strategic vision for our business model of the future.  It’s important for NHEC to gain firsthand experience with batteries so we can better understand the benefits they have to offer our members and the operation of our system,” said Steve Camerino, President and CEO of NHEC. “As more Co-op members install their own batteries, NHEC needs to be ready to support them with a flexible, responsive grid. We are excited to make significant progress on our strategic vision through this innovative partnership with ENGIE, which will provide benefits to all NHEC’s members.”  

“We are delighted to have completed this leading-edge storage project alongside NHEC,” said Laura Beane, Chief Renewables Officer of ENGIE North America. “The addition of battery storage systems such as these are not only delivering real value to customers today, but also helping to accelerate the energy transition. NHEC’s leadership in commissioning this project reflects their commitment to innovation in supporting cost effective, clean energy for their members,” she continued. 

The battery storage unit is the largest in New Hampshire and can fully charge or discharge within two hours. NHEC and ENGIE received all necessary approvals from the Town of Moultonborough. The battery is housed in a pre-fabricated 40 foot container located within the fence line of NHEC’s solar facility in Moultonborough, New Hampshire. The battery unit has on-site fire suppression equipment and will be monitored 24 hours a day, year-round. 

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About New Hampshire Electric Cooperative 

NHEC is a member-owned electric distribution cooperative serving 85,000 homes and businesses in 118 New Hampshire communities. Headquartered in Plymouth, NH, our business is to maintain and service our 6,000 miles of energized line in order to provide our members with the highest level of service. 

 

About ENGIE North America 

ENGIE North America Inc. offers a range of capabilities in the United States and Canada to help our customers achieve their sustainability goals as we work together to shape a sustainable future. Our comprehensive services include helping run facilities more efficiently and optimize energy and other resource use and costs; clean power generation; energy storage; and retail energy supply that includes renewable, demand response, and on-bill financing options. Nearly 100% of the company’s power generation portfolio is low-carbon or renewable. ENGIE S.A. is a global organization focused on low-carbon energy and services, that relies on its key businesses (gas, renewable energy, services) to offer competitive solutions to its customers. With 170,000 employees, along with its customers, partners and stakeholders, the group is committed to accelerating the transition to a carbon-neutral world through reduced energy consumption and more environmentally-friendly solutions. 

For more information on ENGIE North America, please visit our LinkedIn page or Twitter feed, https://www.engie-na.com/ and https://www.engie.com. 

 

Media Contacts: 

New Hampshire Electric Cooperative: Seth Wheeler, wheelers@nhec.com, (603) 536 8685 

ENGIE North America: Sandrine Deparis, sandrine.deparis@engie.com, (202) 855 3705 

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ENGIE Announces Largest Utility-Scale Energy Storage Installation in Massachusetts

October 4, 2017 – Holyoke, MA – 3 MW/6 MWh energy storage system to be installed at Mt. Tom Solar, adjacent to former coal plant; benefits include lower utility capacity costs/demand charges, reduced stress on electric grid, and optimization of solar energy.

 

ENGIE North America and Holyoke Gas & Electric (HG&E) today announced plans for the largest utility-scale energy storage installation in Massachusetts. Green Charge, an ENGIE NA subsidiary, will operate the three-megawatt energy storage system at Mt. Tom Solar, which began operation in January of this year adjacent to the former Mt. Tom Power Station. The system will be used to optimize intermittent solar energy and reduce utility capacity costs for HG&E, the system’s customer, while reducing stress on the HG&E distribution system. This project will contribute to rate stabilization for HG&E customers over the next 20 years. In addition, customers will benefit from improved power quality and reliability. Green Charge expects to complete installation by April 2018, in time for the peak summer months when capacity costs are highest.

As part of Massachusetts’ Peak Demand Management Program, HG&E was awarded a $475,000 MA Department of Energy Resources (DOER) Grant. The funds will be used to contract with, schedule, measure, and analyze this state-of-the-art energy storage system. UMass Amherst will quantify the peak reduction value to the distribution system, accounting for equipment value, cost reduction potential, and overall project data. The goal of the grant is to provide research and recommendations on the future distribution system value of battery storage devices throughout the Commonwealth.

“Massachusetts is proud to be a national leader in energy efficiency programs that reduce overall consumption and we are committed to continuing our work to improve energy costs disproportionately affected by times of peak demand,” said Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker. “The demonstration projects funded through these grants will strengthen our innovation economy and provide the Commonwealth with a roadmap for reducing our most expensive energy loads and securing our energy future.”

While still an emerging energy innovation in Massachusetts, worldwide energy storage is rapidly being considered as a key resource that optimizes clean, renewable energy. Electricity produced from the Mt. Tom 5.76 MW-DC solar farm will be stored in the energy storage system isolated from, but interconnected to, HG&E’s electricity grid. This stored power will be called upon during local and regional peak load periods to cost-effectively satisfy demand, while reducing utility costs and demand charges for customers. Demand charges are incurred for electricity and capacity taken from the power grid and used during peak demand periods.

“We are pleased to work with ENGIE on the Mt. Tom energy storage project, which will produce peak demand and asset management benefits that will help HG&E stabilize electric rates over the long term,” said Jim Lavelle, HG&E’s Manager. “This project also adds a measure of resiliency to our local grid, helping us to better serve our customers.”

Over a 20-year term, HG&E will also use energy storage to reduce the burden on its electrical distribution system, thus increasing overall asset life. Green Charge systems are monitored, optimized, and controlled through its proprietary GridSynergy™ software platform.

“Solar and energy storage are keys to a low-carbon, low-cost energy future and HG&E is taking the lead by moving forward proactively to deploy what we see as the future for the energy industry,” said Frank Demaille, President and CEO of ENGIE North America.

“For several years Holyoke has taken the lead with respect to renewable energy deployment and carbon footprint management,” said Mayor Alex Morse. “Battery storage will enhance our ability to increase our renewable energy portfolio, and we are hopeful that the Mt. Tom Energy Storage project will be the first of many storage projects that help us advance our environmental stewardship objectives.”

About ENGIE:
ENGIE manages a range of energy businesses in the United States and Canada, including electricity generation and cogeneration, natural gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) distribution and sales, retail energy sales, and comprehensive services to help customers run their facilities more efficiently and optimize energy use and expense. Nearly 100 percent of the company’s power generation portfolio is low carbon or carbon free. Globally, the company is the largest independent power producer in the world, with operations in 70 countries employing 153,000 people, including 1,000 researchers in 11 R&D centers. For more information, please visit www.engie-na.com, @ENGIENorthAm, and www.engie.com.

About Holyoke Gas & Electric:
Holyoke Gas & Electric (HG&E) is an innovative, municipally-owned utility that was formed in 1902. Today, HG&E provides electricity, natural gas, and fiber optic telecommunications services to over 18,000 customers. For more information, please visit www.hged.com.

About Green Charge:
In 2017 Green Charge was named the number one distributed energy storage company by Navigant Research. Green Charge has been designing and deploying commercial energy storage since 2009, with systems installed throughout the United States. As part of ENGIE, the largest independent power producer in the world, Green Charge’s mission is to use energy storage to power the world efficiently and sustainably. Our team consists of top energy storage industry experts who provide performance-based solutions to optimize the value of energy for our customers. Our ecosystem of solar, EV charging, and energy efficiency experts allows our customers to combine energy storage and renewables easily and economically. 

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