Canadian utility commissions largest flow battery install in North America
We will be talking a lot about the role energy storage will play with solar project development going forward (our Sept./Oct cover story, for starters), as there is a ton to still be discovered. An intriguing storyline is what types of projects will start to ride the still very new and not totally proven storage wave. And to that end, here is a big one: ViZn Energy Systems won a contract with Hecate Energy, a leading U.S.-based developer of power projects, to supply a 2 MW zinc-iron redox flow battery system for the provision of ancillary services to the Ontario grid operated by the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO).
ViZn Energy’s 2 MW / 6 MWh flow battery, which is scheduled to be commissioned in 2016, is on target to be the largest commissioned flow battery installation in North America and Europe to date.
ViZn also launched a new energy storage platform recently
“We selected ViZn for this project because we had to ensure that the energy storage component was both safe and robust,” said Chris Bullinger, President & CEO of Hecate Energy. “ViZn’s system possesses the necessary capabilities for both power and energy services that this project requires. We also believe that, over the life of the battery, it will provide a very favorable payback.”
“Utility-scale projects like this one will be increasingly important for the energy storage industry moving forward. Utilities are now working to figure out how to maximize the potential of their existing generation capacity,” Ron Van Dell, CEO of ViZn said. “We’re proud to have been chosen by Hecate for this project, and we expect it to serve as a model for utilities that wish to deploy energy storage in the future.”
ViZn’s unique zinc-iron chemistry is safe and non-toxic, allowing their storage systems to be utilized in a wide range of geographic locations without the health and environmental risks associated with many battery chemistries. ViZn’s battery is scalable to tens of megawatts for utility-scale applications and offers one of the fastest charge and discharge responses on the market, giving it best-in-class performance and value.
