Spearmint Energy has completed its 300-megawatt-hour battery energy storage system (BESS) project, one of the largest of its kind in the United States, and it is now operating in West Texas.
The BESS project called Revolution includes 134 battery containers with 6,432 Sungrow battery modules and 45 power conversion systems that will altogether support affordable clean energy and a resilient grid for the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT).
Grid-scale battery storage has become increasingly important to the state as it continues to add renewable energy sources to the grid and has experienced a number of major power outages in recent years. The state is expected to have about 10 gigawatts of available battery storage by the end of 2024, according to a Texas Tribune report.
“We are proud to commence commercial operation at Revolution, our debut grid-scale storage project, to reliably deliver energy throughout ERCOT whenever and wherever it is needed,” said Andrew Waranch, founder, president, and CEO of Spearmint Energy. “We are grateful to our many partners, including Mortenson and Sungrow, for their hard work and zero-injury mentality throughout the construction and commissioning process, and look forward to supporting Texas’ growing demand for electricity – particularly in the face of climate change and rising natural gas and oil prices – for years to come.”
Mortenson, Spearmint's project partner, worked to construct the battery storage facility, substation, and transmission line connecting the project to the ERCOT grid.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, about 75% of planned battery storage projects in the country will be constructed in Texas and California.
Texas, the only U.S. state with its own power grid, will certainly benefit from added battery storage. With recent reports indicating a potential integration of ERCOT with the rest of the Southeastern grid, BESS projects in the state may also benefit the region at large. The state may reportedly begin to export power, reducing costs for Texas residents and helping neighboring states when demand is especially high.
Texas, which faced a significant February 2021 and experienced multiple days of outages, and also faced heat emergencies in 2023 that led to record demand, is acutely aware of the danger extreme weather presents to the state's energy security and the U.S. grid at large. Battery storage may act as essential backup power in such situations, especially as extreme weather events become increasingly common.
