A new energy storage project for Virginia public power utility Danville Utilities will help lower transmission and capacity costs and allow Danville, Va., electric rates to be competitive to other neighboring electric utilities when competing for economic development projects, said Jason Grey, Danville Director of Utilities.
Lightshift Energy, a leading energy storage developer, owner, and operator, on April 23 announced a second project with Danville Utilities “that will bring meaningful cost savings and enhance grid reliability for the City of Danville," Lightshift said.
Danville II, an 11-MW project, has also secured a funding award of $1.5 million from the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission’s Energy Ingenuity Fund to advance energy resilience for the region.
Following the success of Lightshift’s first project with Danville -- Danville I -- which was Virginia’s largest municipal energy storage project when built, Danville II “builds on the city’s commitment to reducing energy costs for its residents and supporting regional load growth,” the company said.
Danville II will operate as a peak-shaving asset, storing electricity during low-demand periods and discharging it back to the grid during peak hours. This model is projected to save Danville residents approximately $30 million over the project’s 20-year lifespan.
“The City of Danville has been looking for various ways to stabilize electric costs for ratepayers,” Grey noted.
Danville Utilities partnered with Lightshift a second time after experiencing the benefits of the Danville I project.
Danville I is on track to save more than $40 million over the 20-year lifetime of the project by reducing transmission and capacity costs.
“With a capacity of 10.5 MW, Danville I has been supplying reliable, clean energy to the equivalent of nearly 9,000 homes since October 2022, helping to stabilize the grid and reduce energy prices. Both projects will help support advances in economic development as well as provide clean capacity for data centers in the region,” Lightshift Energy said.
“This project demonstrates how strategic partnerships and energy investments can drive economic growth in the tobacco region through lowering energy costs and enhanced grid reliability,” said Jerry Silva, TRRC Director of Regional Energy Development and Innovation. “Danville Utilities and Lightshift have been excellent partners in moving this project forward and we are happy to play a big role in educating our commissioners on the energy opportunity.”
The TRRC Energy Ingenuity Fund aims to support innovation and investment in energy technology to formerly tobacco-dependent communities in Virginia in order to improve access to affordable, reliable energy sources.
This funding will enable Lightshift to expand the impact of Danville II, bringing additional savings to residents and supporting the regional economy through local job creation and building out the supply chain and expertise for battery energy storage systems in the region.
“We are very appreciative of the Virginia TRRC’s support and our ongoing collaboration with Jerry Silva on the 11-megawatt battery energy storage system,” Grey said.
“Battery storage offers municipal utilities like Danville a valuable tool to stabilize energy costs, support large electric loads like data centers, and enhance grid reliability,” said Michael Herbert, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Lightshift Energy. “We deeply value our ongoing partnership with Danville and are committed to bringing economic development and energy cost savings to the region.”
The Danville City Council granted a special use permit on November 7 to advance the project, and the City Council also approved the project’s site lease on March 16.
The project is expected to come online in Q2 2026.
