National Grid Awarded $875,000 Energy Storage Grant

Demonstration Project Will Pair Energy Storage System with Large Scale Solar

WALTHAM, MA – December 12, 2017 - National Grid  has been awarded an $875,000 energy storage grant from the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center to fund the development of a Vionx vanadium redox flow battery project in partnership with Vionx Energy, Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Energy Initiatives Group, LLC.

The grant, funded by the Baker-Polito Administration’s Advancing Commonwealth Energy Storage program, will assist in the construction and operation of an energy storage system that will be deployed alongside one of National Grid’s large scale solar installations located in Shirley, MA. National Grid will contribute an additional $567,000 to the project.

“Our project will serve as a test bed for integrating storage and solar through the use of flow batteries, and support the development of new frameworks for dispatching stored solar power,” said Carlos Nouel, Vice President, New Energy Solutions, National Grid. “We are committed to supporting innovative energy technologies that further our core mission of providing reliable energy to our customers.”

In addition to the Shirley project, four additional projects supported by National Grid were also awarded funding. In total, projects sponsored and supported by National Grid represent a total award funding of $4.53 million and 4.8MW/15.6MWh of energy storage capacity.

• Advanced Microgrid Solutions, Inc. was awarded $645,000 to fund the installation of 500kW/1000kWh lithium ion battery energy storage systems at two Walmart locations in Brockton and Leicester.  Paired with software controls, the active demand management system will aim to reduce peak load and provide seasonal peak demand management.
• UMass Memorial Marlborough Hospital (UMass MMH) was awarded $685,595 to fund a 200kW/800kWh zinc iron flow battery energy storage project at their facility. The project will test a unique use case co-locating a flow battery with both combined heat and power and a ground-mounted solar array. This system will showcase a microgrid for critical facilities with additional benefits such as capacity charge reduction and demand response. The selection of a flow battery will allow UMass MMH to cycle the battery frequently.

• Wynn Boston Harbor in Everett was awarded $1,074,225 to fund a 1044kW/4200kWh lithium ion battery energy storage project at their facility. Working with Tesla, the project will deploy a storage system at the under-construction Wynn Boston Harbor resort. This project will be sited at a new development and can be integrated into construction plans upfront, rather than retrofitted at the facility. The project will serve as a model for other property developers planning large-footprint developments in the state.
• Tesla was awarded $1,250,000 to fund a 2.5MW/6.75MWh lithium ion battery energy storage project on Nantucket, MA. Working with the Town, Tesla will install an aggregated system of its Powerwall home battery at 500 Nantucket residences. *NOTE: This project is separate from and in addition to National Grid’s recently announced 48 megawatt-hour battery Tesla energy storage system on Nantucket.