California Proposes Centralized Procurement of 2GW Long-Duration Storage to Boost Renewable Energy and Net-Zero Goals.

The California Energy Commission (CEC) has published a report by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) suggesting that state bodies should centralise procurement of 2GW of long-duration storage facilities (LDES), including 7.6GW of offshore wind and 1GW of geothermal. The report aims to provide policymakers and stakeholders with a greater understanding of the role and costs associated with these facilities in California. It also noted that California has made significant progress towards its net-zero goals, with 50% of electricity coming from renewable sources in 2023 and 28% from solar sources. The CEC’s report found that most LDES projects will likely be 8-hour systems, with storage facilities with an efficiency greater than 80% expected to be competitive with 4-hour facilities with a higher 85% efficiency for only a slightly lower US$/kW cost. The cost of these projects would depend heavily on the efficiency and efficiency of the projects. The study also found that daytime EV charging could reduce the cost of needed storage by US$1 billion.