Salt River Project (SRP) and Plus Power held a ribbon cutting this week for the projects.

The 250 MW Sierra Estrella Energy Storage facility, located in Avondale, Arizona, is SRP’s largest grid-tied battery and now the state’s largest standalone battery. The 90 MW Superstition Energy Storage facility, located in Gilbert, Arizona, was expected to come online this week, SRP said June 24.

Both facilities feature Tesla lithium-ion battery energy storage systems. Plus Power worked with the Gilbert and Avondale Fire Departments on an emergency response plan and to ensure local first responders were engaged throughout the project design, construction, operation and training phases.

Additionally, both projects were supported by a federal investment tax credit from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

When both facilities are operational, nearly 1,300 MW of battery and pumped hydro storage will be on SRP’s system.

The utility aims to reduce emissions (from 2005 levels) by more than 65 percent by 2035 and 90 percent by 2050. As a part of that plan, SRP will have retired approximately 2,600 MW of coal-fired generation by 2032.

The Cranberry Point facility, located in Carver, Massachusetts, is intended to help stabilize the electric grid during the region’s increasing number of extreme weather events while helping to suppress volatile wholesale prices for ratepayers, Plus Power said.

The 150 MW / 300 MWh Cranberry Point Energy Storage facility was among the first few standalone batteries to ever clear the Forward Capacity Auction in 2021 with the Independent System Operator of New England, or ISO-NE. With that award, Cranberry Point committed to providing capacity to the ISO-NE market through 2031. In the same auction, Plus Power’s 175 MW / 350 MWh Cross Town Energy Storage facility in Gorham, Maine also won a capacity payment commitment from ISO-NE through 2031.

Cranberry Point and Cross Town are the largest battery energy storage projects in construction with planned operations in New England and are expected to be online by the summer of 2025. The Cross Town Energy Storage project commenced construction in April 2024 and is now the largest battery coming online in the region, Plus Power said. The Cranberry Point facility, under construction since December 2023, is the second-largest and represents approximately a third of the Commonwealth’s goal to deploy 1,000 MWh of battery energy storage by 2025.

Plus Power said the announcement marks the first major financing of a utility-scale project that will benefit from Clean Peak Energy Certificates (CPECs), a relatively new incentive program unique to Massachusetts. The Commonwealth launched the Clean Peak Standard in 2020 to incentivize the pairing of emissions-free generation with seasonal peak demand.

Plus Power is now operating three battery storage facilities in Hawaii and Texas, including the Rodeo Ranch Energy Storage at nearly 300 MW / 600 MWh.  By summer 2024, Plus Power said it will have seven operating projects in Hawaii, Texas, and Arizona totaling 1,325 MW and 3,500 MWh. The company also boasts a growing portfolio of large-scale lithium-ion battery systems in more than 25 states and Canada and is currently executing on 10 GW of battery storage capacity in transmission interconnection queues.

First Citizens Bank and Nord LB acted as coordinating lead arrangers while Investec and Siemens Financial Services acted as joint lead arrangers. Investec is the administrative agent and U.S. Bank is the depositary bank. Sheppard Mullin acted as transaction counsel for Plus Power and Winston & Strawn acted as transaction counsel for the lenders. The $133 million financing includes a construction-to-term loan, bridge loan, and letter of credit facility.

“The Cranberry Point Energy Storage facility is poised to improve grid stability and reliability while also ensuring the efficient use of clean power in the region,” said Mike Lorusso, who leads First Citizens Bank’s Energy Finance business. “We were pleased to serve as coordinating lead arranger for this important battery storage project on behalf of Plus Power, which continues to build its reputation as a leader in the battery storage sector.”

Originally published in Renewable Energy World.

Arizona-based municipal utility Salt River Project (SRP) signed contracts with Plus Power to bring online two battery storage systems with a total combined output of 340 MW by early summer 2024.

The first project, called Sierra Estrella, will be a 250 MW/1 GWh storage system located in Avondale. The second, Superstition, will be a 90 MW/360 MWh system located in Gilbert. Both would be owned and operated by a subsidiary of Plus Power.

Both systems are expected to use Tesla lithium-ion batteries. Plus Power is currently working with the Gilbert and Avondale Fire Departments on an emergency response plan and to ensure local first responders are engaged throughout the project design, construction, operation and training phases.  

The project additions would bring SRP to 800 MW of energy storage contracted or owned by 2024.

SRP is also developing the Sonoran Energy Center, which would be the largest solar and battery storage project in Arizona. SRP has also contracted for another solar and battery project called the Storey Energy Center and will be adding a battery to the Saint Solar project site, both of which will be located near Coolidge. All three projects are expected to be placed into service in 2023.

SRP has a goal of reducing carbon intensity by more than 65% by 2035 and 90% by 2050, from 2005 levels. SRP retired the 2,250 MW coal-fired Navajo plant in 2019 and plans to retire approximately 2,600 MW of coal-fired generation by 2032.