Electrify America recently announced that it has installed its first megawatt-level battery energy storage system (BESS) at its charging station in Baker, California, as per Electrek.
With the latest installation, the Baker station has increased from eight fast chargers to twelve. According to Electrify America, it collaborates with various BESS system suppliers, including Tesla and Eaton.
Notably, Tesla batteries are used to power the system at Baker station.
According to conceptcarz, the megawatt-level energy storage system paired with a solar canopy is superior to Electrify America’s current BESS in controlling energy costs and reducing grid stress.
Megawatt-level energy storage system to serve Charging Stations when Power Grids are stressed
When local utilities restrict the amount of electricity a station may draw from the grid, the megawatt-level energy storage system serves as a buffer to provide extra power to its charging stations.
Meanwhile, Electrify America explained that Baker Station is the first to install the megawatt-level energy storage technology due to its remote location and previous utility capacity restrictions.
The new system has a storage capacity of about 1.5 MW (3 MWh). It is supported by a solar canopy with a 66-kW generation capacity.
“To put this into perspective, the energy storage system at Baker, when fully charged, could provide enough energy for an average household for over three months on the single charge,” Jigar Shah, head of energy services at Electrify America, said.
Shah added: “The application of the megawatt-level energy storage is the latest example of how we are continuously innovating to tackle infrastructure challenges and meet charging needs today. As we expand the use of such solutions to more of our charging stations and also to our medium-duty and heavy-duty electric fleet customers, we are positioned to enable continued transportation electrification even in the face of utility capacity constraints.”
Electrify America reports that its users close to Baker have already started using the upgraded station. In fact, the charging offload’s peak energy demand has already topped 1 MW.
The BESS and solar canopy were the only power sources for the entire megawatt-level load.
150 Megawatt-level energy storage system are in operation across USA
Electrify America aims to exemplify less strain on the electrical grid by using these more comprehensive storage solutions and new solar canopies. It is also worth noting that the company has more than 150 battery energy storage solutions already in place at stations around the US.
JVNE reported that one of the country’s largest DC fast-charging networks is now run by Electrify America. It comprises about 800 charging stations and 3,500 individual EV chargers.
By 2026, the company plans to strengthen its presence in the US and Canada to 1,800 different Electrify America stations, totaling about 10,000 chargers.
Charging stations for electric vehicles consume a lot of electricity. The grid, which also has to supply homes and buildings, may occasionally bear the stress of that load.
This recent innovation provides a solution. It can take electricity from the battery to charge vehicles when relying solely on power lines could strain the local utility network.
