Batteries

Xcel, Ambri partner on liquid metal battery storage project

Xcel is looking to energy storage developer Ambri’s liquid metal battery technology to counteract its renewable energy additions and coal plants retirements.
Xcel, Ambri partner on liquid metal battery storage project
(Source: Ambri)

Xcel Energy is procuring more battery storage to further achieve clean energy goals.

The utility is looking to energy storage developer Ambri’s liquid metal battery technology both to support its renewable energy additions and coal plants retirements.

The year-long energy storage project test will be installed at the Solar Technology Acceleration Center (SolarTAC) in Aurora, Colorado.

SolarTAC is the largest outdoor multi-user demonstration center for solar technologies in the United States. Managed and operated by MRIGlobal, it is a 74-acre test facility where the solar industry can test, validate and demonstrate near-market and advanced solar technologies.

The site also supports microgrid capabilities at the edge or end of the electric distribution system.

Energy storage developer Ambri announced a $144 million financing round, our partners at Renewable Energy World reported in 2021. The company is backed by India’s Reliance New Energy Solar Ltd, Paulson & Co. Inc, and the company’s largest shareholder, Bill Gates, among others.

The funds are to be used to finance and commercialize Ambri’s daily cycling, long-duration system technology and to build a domestic manufacturing facility. Ambri’s mission is to meet the needs of the grid-scale energy storage market and industrial energy customers, while supporting the transition to renewable energy sources.

Xcel plans to retire all coal-fired plants in the region by 2030; its Sherco 3 plant will close in 2030, following the closure of the Allen S. King coal plant in 2028.

The utility aims to achieve a net-zero energy future by 2050.

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