ACEP Battery Energy Storage System Brought Online

Last week ACEP completed the commissioning of a new 220 kilowatt-hour/550 kW lithium-ion battery energy storage system funded by the Office of Naval Research under a Defense University Instrumentation Program grant.

The commissioning was performed by engineers from Saft (manufacturer of the Li-ion battery) and ABB/Hitachi (manufacturer of the 313 kilovolt-ampere battery energy storage system inverter) in collaboration with the ACEP Power Systems Integration team.

The new state-of-the-art Li-ion battery, installed at ACEP’s Energy Technology Facility, replaces an aging lead-acid battery bank. It can support the high charge and discharge rates necessary to provide spinning reserve and frequency response for islanded microgrids.

The new BESS will enhance current ACEP research capabilities for performing research on the integration of battery energy storage systems in weak electrical grids, including remote Alaska communities and tactical military power systems.

 

Power Systems Integration team members work with representatives from Saft and ABB/Hitachi to bring the new battery online. Photo by Rob Bensin.