An old paper mill in Maine will be the site of a ‘multi-day’ battery storage system, as part of a larger project to reinforce and upgrade New England’s power grid.
Power Up New England, made up of the governments of the region’s six states, aims to increase grid interconnection capabilities.
According to Energy Storage News, the project was selected to receive grant funding from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The DOE chose eight projects spanning 18 states for a share of $2.2 billion in funding for transmission infrastructure and technology upgrades.
The awards are part of the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program, which will pay out more than $10 billion in total and result in close to 13GW of new grid capacity.
“Located at the site of a former paper mill in rural Maine, this iron-air battery system will have the most energy capacity of any battery system announced yet in the world,” Matteo Jaramillo said. He continued, “The project will ensure a more reliable, clean, and affordable grid in New England by reducing transmission congestion and making valuable wind energy resources available when and where they are needed. By locating the project at an EPA brownfield site, we look forward to driving local job growth and other community benefits.”
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