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Delivering on the company’s commitment to expand battery energy storage technology in Florida, Duke Energy announced the completion of three battery projects in Gilchrist, Gulf and Highlands counties.
Totaling nearly 34 megawatts, the recently completed facilities will enhance the customer experience by continuing to modernize grid operations, improve overall reliability and support critical services during power outages.
“Duke Energy Florida is committed to a clean energy future for our customers and communities,” said Melissa Seixas, Duke Energy Florida state president. “With each new battery site, Duke Energy takes another important step in expanding new storage technologies in Florida while maximizing benefits to our customers and the grid.”
As the grid manager and operator, Duke Energy Florida can optimize the versatility of battery technology to provide multiple customer and electric system benefits, to include balancing energy demand, managing intermittent resources such as solar energy, increasing energy security and deferring traditional power grid upgrades.
The nearly 18-megawatt lithium battery site is located at the company’s 45-megawatt Lake Placid Solar Power Plant in Highlands County. The addition of battery storage to the utility-scale solar plant is the first of its kind for Duke Energy Florida, allowing solar energy to be dispatchable by the company’s grid operators, which improves overall plant efficiency.
The 11-megawatt Trenton lithium battery facility is located 30 miles west of Gainesville in Gilchrist County. This newer technology will improve power reliability. The 5.5-megawatt Cape San Blas lithium battery facility is located approximately 40 miles southeast of Panama City in Gulf County. The project provides additional power capacity to meet customers’ increasing demand for energy. This project is an economical alternative to replacing distribution equipment necessary to accommodate local growth.
Duke Energy Florida’s continued investment in battery technology reflects the company’s belief that energy storage plays a significant and evolving role in how energy is delivered to customers now and in the future.
In 2022, Duke Energy will have six battery sites in operation in Florida totaling 50 megawatts of energy storage.
