PSEG Long Island LLC, on behalf of the Long Island Power Authority, is planning to issue a request for proposals for bulk energy storage resources that will be interconnected to the Long Island electric grid.
In order to help achieve a productive RFP process, PSEG Long Island on March 3 issued a request for information (RFI) to entities experienced in developing and operating energy storage resources.
PSEG Long Island provides a wide range of energy-related services to LIPA’s customers through various energy efficiency and renewable programs in its service territory, with the exception of customers located in the villages of Rockville Centre, Freeport, and Greenport.
New York State, through its Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act enacted last year, has set a target that 70% of its electricity be produced from renewable resources by 2030 with the additional expressed goal of achieving a 100% carbon free grid by 2040.
Included in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act targets is a 3,000 MW 2030 energy storage goal. This goal was preceded by a December 2018 New York Public Service Commission (“PSC”) order establishing 1,500 MW target for 2025.
LIPA intends to meet its share of these goals, which amounts to approximately a 200 MW share of the 2025 statewide goal. A portion of this 200 MW goal is expected to be met through existing energy storage contracts and PSEG Long Island/LIPA initiatives outside of the RFP including behind-the meter programs and distribution-level storage projects proposed in PSEG Long Island’s Utility 2.0 long range plan.
The 2020 bulk energy storage RFP is expected to have a goal to obtain between 155 MW and 175 MW, the RFI noted.
The purpose of the RFI is to gather information and obtain input from the energy storage community to assist PSEG Long Island in preparing the RFP “and should not be construed as the final document on timing or scope of an RFP to be issued later in 2020,” the RFI noted.
The issuance of the RFI is an opportunity for PSEG Long Island to learn about different storage technologies, operational capabilities, and stages of development. The RFI will help PSEG Long Island to establish a better understanding of the storage technologies that could bid into the RFP.
The RFI seeks relevant input from respondents on a wide range of matters including, among other things:
- Specific details of the energy storage products or services to be procured;
- Respondents’ knowledge and/or experience with different storage technologies, projects and use cases that have provided value to utility customers and how PSEG Long Island’s evaluation should account for different technologies;
- Identification of barriers to energy storage project development and how the RFP could address those barriers;
- The appropriate structure for improving market certainty to promote bulk energy storage development on Long Island; and
- What information on LIPA’s system requirements and performance criteria would be helpful to developers in assisting them to formulate their energy storage proposals.
Energy storage technologies
The RFI notes that PSEG Long Island is interested in learning if any new energy storage technologies are available in the market that can provide value to its customers. Consequently, it currently intends to place no restrictions on energy storage technologies that can be submitted in proposals by respondents in the RFP.
By allowing proposals to include any energy storage technology, PSEG Long Island “recognizes that this has impacts on its evaluation criteria, as for example roundtrip efficiencies can vary greatly between different technologies.” Therefore, PSEG Long Island contemplates not imposing a minimum roundtrip efficiency requirement in the RFP. “There are likely to be other impacts on evaluation criteria as a result of allowing submittals using all types of energy storage technologies.”
Responses to the RFI, which is available here, are due April 15.
