Energy Storage, Utilities, Solar  -  November 7, 2022

Burbank Water and Power Adds Battery Storage

Burbank Water and Power (BWP) in California entered into an agreement for ESS, a manufacturer of long-duration iron flow batteries for commercial and utility-scale energy storage applications, to deliver BWP’s first utility-scale battery storage project.

Under the agreement, a 75 kW/500kWh ESS Energy Warehouse™ will be installed and connected to a 265 kW solar array on the BWP EcoCampus.

The iron flow battery will support the increased use of renewable power and allow excess renewable energy to be stored and used as baseload energy for Burbank, improving the resilience and reliability of the grid. ESS iron flow battery technology is safe and non-toxic, offers a 25-year lifespan without capacity degradation, and is manufactured in the U.S.

“BWP is already using small-scale battery technology at our substations, but we see the value in adding considerably more storage to the network. This initiative will be the largest battery installed in Burbank, providing enough renewable power for 300 homes annually,” says Mandip Samra, Assistant General Manager for Power Supply at BWP in a statement. “The project is a big step forward to help meet our goal of having a greenhouse gas-free power supply by 2040 and providing energy storage for Burbank now and for decades to come.”

The ESS Energy Warehouse™ is expected to be installed in Burbank by December 2023.