renewables

Pullman became Washington state’s first smart-grid city when utilities company Avista switched on its energy storage system for a 18-month trial run this week.

The 1 MW, 3.2 MWh large-scale battery system will store power harvested from renewable power sources, to be used when the wind is not blowing, or the sun is not shining. The flow battery, delivered by UniEnergy Technologies, is claimed to be the largest capacity flow battery operating in North American and Europe to date.

The project is funded by a $3.2 million grant from the Washington State Department of Commerce’s Clean Energy Fund, as well as a $3.8 million investment by Avista.

The data collected in the trial period will be used in research into power system reliability and power generation from intermittent renewable sources, conducted by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.