The technology group Wärtsilä announced today that it will supply its energy storage technology for two 200-MW projects in southern Texas, USA. The megawatt-hour rating of the facilities was not available at press time.
Wärtsilä has also signed ten-year guaranteed asset performance agreements for the installations. The order was placed by Able Grid Energy Solutions, a utility-scale energy storage project development arm of MAP RE/ES, one of North America’s leading investors in modern energy projects. The order was booked by Wärtsilä in February 2021.
The Madero and Ignacio energy storage plants will deliver grid support to ERCOT. Wärtsilä will supply its GridSolv Quantum energy storage solution. In addition, the energy storage systems will feature Wärtsilä’s GEMS smart energy management platform to monitor and control the flow of energy, enabling these projects to provide grid support for short periods during extreme weather or grid instability conditions, such as those that Texas has recently experienced.
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“Able Grid selected Wärtsilä technology, among other considerations, for its critical safety and cyber-security features. The system complies with all applicable standards, like UL9540A, to ensure sustained safe and reliable operations. In addition, the GEMS Power Plant Controller is U.S.-code based and meets all IEC62443 cybersecurity standards,” commented Sharon Greenberg, Able Grid Chief Operating Officer.
“The Madero and Ignacio projects will participate in the existing ERCOT wholesale electricity market, delivering key ancillary services required for grid stability. Years of development by forward-looking innovators like Wärtsilä now allow us to deploy market-driven solutions that will improve electricity grid reliability and performance while enabling further decarbonisation of electricity markets,” added Aaron Zubaty, CEO of MAP RE/ES.
The systems are expected to become fully operational starting in January 2022.
