S&C Energy Storage System to Provide Grid Support for PJM

Solution demonstrates new revenue streams for continued energy storage investments

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Oct 20, 2014, 09:00 ET

CHICAGO, Oct. 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- S&C Electric Company, a global leader in energy storage integration, announces the deployment of six 25-kW PureWave^® Community Energy Storage systems at its global headquarters in Chicago. The 150-kW energy storage system provides fast-response frequency regulation for the PJM market, the world's largest competitive wholesale electricity market serving over 61 million people in 13 states and the District of Columbia.

Ancillary grid services, such as frequency regulation, are crucial for maintaining the stability and reliability of the power system. Frequency regulation is used to minimize the mismatch between generation and loads by quickly adjusting generation output to maintain the grid's ideal frequency – 60 Hz in parts of the world and 50 Hz in others. Historically, fossil-fueled fired generating plants have provided a majority of such services, but response times often exceeded 20 minutes. In 2011, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued Order 755, which mandated higher rates for fast-responding frequency regulation sources.

"Energy storage is the ideal solution for providing frequency regulation within seconds rather than minutes," says Troy Miller, manager – Business Development & Product Management, Power Quality Products, S&C Electric Company. "Selling into the fast frequency regulation market gives customers another way to monetize energy storage benefits, ultimately making a strong business case for energy storage investment."

S&C is selling its CES-stored electricity to PJM through Intelligent Generation, which offers a networked software platform that facilitates optimization and bidding of distributed energy resources into wholesale electricity markets.

"Unlocking the value in energy storage is the key to a cleaner, more efficient grid," says Jay Marhoefer, CEO and co-founder, Intelligent Generation LLC. "Our patented software enables S&C's PureWave Community Energy Storage system to operate as a virtual power plant, and help system owners, like S&C, create new revenue streams for their assets."

In order to sell into the fast-response frequency regulation market, PJM requires systems to pass a series of tests that measure the accuracy, delay and precision between PJM's regulation signal and the system's output. PJM rejects any system that does not meet a minimum of 75 percent; S&C's system passed with an average performance score of 97 percent.

"The system is now participating in the market on a daily basis," says Tim Qualheim, Vice President – Strategic Solutions, S&C. "Our doors are open, and we are excited to welcome customers, industry professionals and regulators to see how we are making this system work for the grid and how to maximize the multiple benefits of energy storage."

S&C is a world-leading provider of solutions to connect energy storage systems to the grid. S&C's PureWave CES and PureWave^® SMS Storage Management Systems utilize sophisticated power electronics and software to manage charging and discharging of battery-based systems. S&C also offers a complete suite of services for designing, deploying and maintaining these energy storage systems.

Today, S&C solutions are connecting more than 146 megawatt-hours of energy storage to power systems around the world which equates to 20 percent of the world's battery energy storage capacity.

About S&C Electric Company
S&C, with global headquarters in Chicago, USA, is applying its heritage of innovation to address challenges facing the world's power grids and is thus shaping the future of reliable electricity delivery. The mission of employee-owned S&C is to continually develop new solutions for electricity delivery, fostering the improved efficiency and reliability required for the intelligent grid. Additional information about S&C is available at www.sandc.com.

About Intelligent Generation LLC
Intelligent Generation is a Chicago-based developer of patented software networks that make energy storage more profitable. A PJM member since 2013, Intelligent Generation helps commercial and industrial customers use energy storage systems, often in combination with solar PV, to earn wholesale power market revenues, save on electricity bills and protect operations with back-up power. Additional information is available at www.intelgen.com.