Duke Energy has expanded its battery energy storage technology with the completion of three battery storage projects with a combined 34 MW in Florida.
The three projects are located in Gilchrist, Gulf and Highlands counties. The facilities will improve customer experience by modernizing grid operations, improving reliability and supporting critical services in case of a power outage.
Duke Energy Florida State President Melissa Seixas said, “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.”
The 18-MW lithium battery has been installed at the firm’s 45 MW Lake Placid Solar Power Plant in Highlands County. It is the first-of-its-kind projects for Duke Energy Florida, facilitating the dispatch of solar energy by grid operators and improving plant efficiency.
The battery facility in Gilchrist County is an 11-MW Trenton lithium battery facility and the one in Gulf County is the 5.- MW Cape San Blas lithium battery facility. The Cape San Blas facility will add power capacity to meet the increasing customer requirements.
In 2022, Duke Energy will have a total of 50 MW of energy storage capacity across six battery sites in Florida, having invested more than $2 billion. Duke Energy Florida’s solar generation portfolio includes 25 grid-connected solar power plants, providing 1,500 MW of emission-free generation and about 5 million solar panels by 2024.
Additionally, Duke Energy intends to install a 3.5 MW solar plus storage microgrid site at Pinellas County's John Hopkins Middle School that will provide backup for a needs hurricane evacuation shelter. The microgrid comprises a 1 MW solar parking canopy and a 2.5 MW battery and controls.
Duke Energy is also investing in transportation electrification by adding 627 EV charging stations, including 52 DC Fast Chargers, and a modernized power grid.
