The CPUC has been supportive of the need to add storage, Marshall told me; so as to get more of the renewable energy that PG&E has contracted for onto the grid. Over 4 GW (4,000) of signed PG&E contracts for new renewable energy now awaits citizen review at the final local environmental permit stage.
To meet the California 2020 goal of 33% renewable energy, California will also need to build as much as 4 GW of storage – for both the renewable energy currently on the grid, and these new projects.
The Obama administration is strongly backing R&D and infrastructure grants for smart grids because energy storage is essential to renewable power (previous story: Why Wind Storage is Worth Trillions) Underground CAES is the simplest and (so far) the cheapest way to store renewable energy. Below are some of the other new renewable energy storage technologies being funded.
Image: ladylucente
Related renewable energy storage funding:
Storing Renewable Energy in Boxes of Air
Top ARPA-E Funding Goes to Renewable Storage in “Liquid Battery”
Metal-Air Battery With 11 Times the Energy at Half the Cost?
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About Susan Kraemer
