It appears energy storage for a solar facility in Ohio is now being regarded as a fundamental operational consideration by participants.
According to pv magazine, construction will begin in October on this Ohio 7 MW solar electricity storage facility. Completion of this project is expected some time next February. The facility, located in Minster, will be connected to a PV plant that is scheduled to go online by the end of the year.
A basic consideration in any renewable energy network, the need to add storage has been called for by many solar proponents. The decision regarding this facility was made following the introduction of a bill that saw negative changes to Solar Renewable Energy Credit (SREC) requirements.
When all is said and done, the solar+storage system is expected to be the biggest of its kind in the United States. American Renewable Energy and Power LLC (AREP) is the developer of both systems.
2013 view of Minster location
The 7-megawatt energy storage facility will use lithium-ion batteries and will be adjacent to a new 4.2-MW solar power plant. Together, the two projects are expected to improve electric service for the Minster electric system, said Village Administrator Donald Harrod in an interview with Public Power Daily (PPD).
S&C Electric Company was contracted by property owner Half Moon Ventures (HMV) to provide EPC services to the energy storage component of the project, which will comprise S&C’s PureWave Storage Management System. Work on this element should begin in mid-October and be completed by next February.
Storage Was Added
AREP decided to expand the original solar project to include a storage facility, and received conditional approval from the Minster council in December 2014. After that, HMV was brought on board to provide financing for both projects; it is now the owner.
The local electric utility views the addition of storage favorably, stated PPD, citing Harrod: “…the municipal electric utility had been thinking about spending $200,000 to put in capacitors to improve its power quality.” But with the solar and energy storage project, he believes the utility will be able to avoid that expense.
Minster photos via Green Energy Ohio Tour
