How batteries help keep Texas lights on during extreme weather

Source: Yusuf Latief | · SMART ENERGY INTERNATIONAL · | May 27, 2024

Batteries in ERCOT (Electric Reliability Council of Texas) played an essential part in keeping the lights on during extreme 2023 summer heat, freeing up more than 3GW of natural gas power plants during critical hours, finds research from Aurora Energy.

Source: Aurora Energy Research

According to the research and insights company, as Texan conditions indicate another tough Summer on the state’s power grid, battery energy storage systems have and will continue to help lessen the impact and cost of extreme weather.

In their report, Role of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) in the ERCOT Market, Aurora states that BESS facilities have already proven to be a critical component of Texas’ energy mix by helping the state maintain reliable, cost-effective and dispatchable power in times of high demand.

They have helped address system dynamics created by intermittent renewable energy and the grid’s challenging operating conditions that are exacerbated by harsh weather. The report found that in both regular and extreme conditions, batteries have helped lower system costs while enabling increasing natural gas generation.

“Battery energy storage systems in Texas have come under increasing scrutiny, but our analysis shows batteries have increased reliability and reduced costs for Texans during critical days, such as last January’s Winter Storm,” said Olivier Beaufils, ERCOT market lead at Aurora Energy Research.

“Interestingly, this has not come at the expense of gas-fired generation. In fact, as battery storage systems have been increasingly providing ancillary services in Texas, they have enabled an equivalent amount of natural gas generation to participate in the system, meaning that one GW of newly constructed batteries participating in the ancillary services markets have resulted in about a GW of gas-fired generation coming out of back-up services and moving into the energy markets during periods of system stress.”