Having already demonstrated a steadfast commitment to the research and development of alternative, renewable energy sources; the Obama Administration and U.S. Department of Energy continue to manifest their belief that new forms of clean energy storage are a crucial part of the country’s future.
The latest example of this commitment comes in the form of a $22 million federal grant to North Carolina’s Duke Energy. The funds, which Duke Energy says it plans to match, will be used to design, build and install large-scale batteries to store wind energy at one of its wind farms in Texas.
“Energy storage truly has the potential to serve as a ‘game-changer’ when it comes to renewable power,” said Wouter van Kempen, president of Duke Energy Generation Services. “Through this project, Duke Energy intends to show that renewables can play an even bigger role in our country’s energy future.”
The biggest question mark surrounding the use of wind as a renewable source of energy is what to do once the wind stops blowing. Duke Energy hopes to help provide an answer as the batteries at it’s Notrees Windpower Project in Ector and Winkler counties, Texas, will store excess wind energy and discharge it whenever demand for electricity is highest – not just when wind turbine blades are turning. The project represents one of the nation’s first demonstrations of energy storage at a utility-scale wind farm. The 95 wind turbines in operation at Duke Energy’s Notrees site can generate 151 megawatts (MW) of clean, renewable electricity.
The grant money comes from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which has already handed out billions of dollars to companies and organizations seeking to research, develop, and harness new forms of energy that are both clean and renewable.
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