WASHINGTON, D.C. — As part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, a key pillar of Bidenomics, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced up to $325 million for 15 projects across 17 states and one tribal nation to accelerate the development of long-duration energy storage (LDES) technologies. Funded by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, these demonstration projects will increase community control of local power systems, mitigate risks associated with disruptions to the grid, and help communities develop reliable and affordable energy systems. Today’s announcement will help DOE realize its Long Duration Storage Shot goal of reducing the cost of LDES by 90% by 2030 and supports the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to advance critical clean energy technologies, expand the adoption of renewable energy resources, and strengthen America’s energy security.

“As we build our clean energy future, reliable energy storage systems will play a key role in protecting communities by providing dependable sources of electricity when and where it’s needed most, particularly in the aftermath of extreme weather events or natural disasters,” said U.S Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “Thanks to President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, DOE is supporting game-changing energy storage projects across the nation–laying the foundation for the innovative solutions we need to ensure stronger, more resilient communities.”

Energy storage is essential to enabling utilities and grid operators to effectively adopt and utilize the nation’s growing portfolio of clean energy resources, like solar and wind, on demand. However, today’s energy storage technologies are not sufficiently scaled or affordable to support the broad use of renewable energy on the grid. According to DOE’s Pathways to Commercial Liftoff: LDES report, cheaper, longer, and more efficient storage is needed to meet energy demand that fluctuates throughout the day and night. For example, solar power generated during the day could be stored for nighttime use or nuclear energy generated in low demand periods can be used when demand increases. 

The LDES Demonstrations Program, managed by DOE’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED), funds a range of different technology types intended to overcome technical and institutional barriers to full-scale deployment of LDES systems in diverse geographies and climates. Projects selected will feature a range of intraday (10 to 36 hours) and multiday (36 to 160+ hours) storage solutions, which can minimize the frequency and length of power interruptions caused by events such as severe weather or cyberattacks on the grid. Some selected projects seek to pursue innovative approaches to the re-use and recycling of retired batteries–supporting the growing domestic electric vehicle industry and creating new economic opportunities while delivering environmental benefits to communities across the country.

Rural areas are often the last to benefit from innovation, have lower household incomes, and have limited resources to invest in emerging technologies. Power outages are increasingly common in these areas, leaving communities and critical infrastructure more vulnerable. To address these challenges, the National Renewables Cooperative Organization (NRCO) and its project partners are developing 5 geographically diverse sites across the Midwest, Southeast, and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States utilizing vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs) with nominal discharge ratings of 700kW to 3.6MW and discharge capabilities of up to 20 hours. The aim is to bring high-benefit, low-risk energy solutions to vulnerable and underserved rural areas. For co-ops that may not have experience with long-duration energy storage (LDES), this demonstration will showcase the value and the implementation path for LDES and give the co-ops experience working with the technology, spurring replication opportunities with co-ops across the country. The project will also help grow flow battery production nationally by providing data into the DOE’s Rapid Operational Validation Initiative (ROVI) for Flow Batteries program. Finally, this project will help these rural cooperatives participate in renewable energy programs.The technology provider, Invinity Energy Systems, is a global leader in the production of vanadium flow batteries (VFB). Invinity’s flow batteries have high efficiencies and long lifespans. The company has already successfully installed its VFBs elsewhere in the world, including in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the UK.

NRCO is implementing this project with five of its member cooperatives (Central Electric Power Cooperative, Central Iowa Power Cooperative, Dairyland Power Cooperative, North Carolina Electric Membership Corporation, and Old Dominion Electric Cooperative), Invinity Energy Systems, and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). PNNL will carry out the techno-economic analyses and data collection for the project, which will inform decision-making and provide valuable insights into the potential benefits of VRFBs.