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November 25, 2024 Focus | Clean Energy

After awarding $48.4M in benefits, PURA temporarily suspended energy storage incentives program

Contributed A battery energy storage facility in New York.
By Andrew Larson
RELATED STORY: As CT plans for clean-energy future, 800 MW of battery energy storage is in pipeline – but projects face regulatory hurdles and delays
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Connecticut’s Energy Storage Solutions (ESS) program is one of two state initiatives that provide incentives to developers of battery energy storage facilities.

The other program, a 400-MW procurement through the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, has not yet approved any projects.

But the ESS program, geared toward small-scale commercial and residential projects, has been so popular that the state had to temporarily suspend it.

The ESS program is overseen by the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) and administered by the Connecticut Green Bank, Eversource and United Illuminating.

It has awarded $48.4 million in incentives since it began two years ago, to roughly 72 battery energy storage projects with capacity totaling 148.9 MW, according to the Green Bank.

The program offers both upfront and performance-based incentives to contractors and owners of battery energy systems.

The upfront incentives include direct payments to the contractor or system owner, after the system is installed and confirmed to be operational, said Edward Kranich, senior manager of incentive programs for the Green Bank.

Edward Kranich

The annual performance-based incentive is based on how much average power a battery contributes to the grid during peak seasons.

So far, the ESS program, which is funded by ratepayers, has approved about 150 MW of commercial energy storage capacity, with another 280 MW of capacity left to award.

The projects have received an average of $671,825 in funding, or about $125 per kilowatt-hour of electricity, Kranich said.

However, PURA in June directed the Green Bank to temporarily suspend new commercial enrollments after program administrators approved projects totaling 113.9 MW, exceeding a 100-MW cap.

The program is expected to resume in December, but with a reduced upfront incentive.

“We actually haven’t been approving any commercial projects since June, but we have some applications in the queue,” Kranich said. “Those will be approved at the new rates in December.”

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