Nevada has just launched the largest solar and battery energy storage project in the U.S., called the Gemini Solar + Storage project. Located near Las Vegas, this huge setup features 1.8 million solar panels and 380 megawatts of battery storage. It can power about 10% of Nevada’s peak electricity needs and stores enough energy to keep the lights on even after sunset. The project is a big step in the push for clean energy, showing how solar and battery storage are rapidly expanding across the country.
Following the announcement by Primergy Solar and Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners that the Gemini Solar + Storage project in Clark County is now fully operational, Nevada is now home to the largest solar plus battery energy storage system project in the United States.
Amidst the nation’s rapid proliferation of solar plus storage facilities, Gemini is one of the newest of these sites reports OilPrice.com.
According to Primergy Solar, Gemini, which is only thirty minutes outside of Las Vegas, produces enough dependable renewable energy to meet 10% of Nevada’s peak electricity demand.
At the Gemini site, the 1.8 million solar panels can produce up to 690 megawatts (MW) of electricity. The solar panels and 380 MW of 4-hour battery storage are co-located to give Nevadans 1,400 MWh of clean, dependable power after dusk.
According to Primergy Solar and Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners, the project’s special DC-coupled storage configuration maximizes the capture and storage of solar energy directly on-site and allows the battery energy storage system to charge directly from the solar panels, increasing efficiency.
Energy Storage Adoption Keeps Increasing in the United States
In its assessment of the first full year of the Inflation Reduction Act last year, the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) stated that solar + storage accounted for 13% of residential installations and 5% of non-residential installations.
According to SEIA, storage will be included in 10% of non-residential installations and 25% of new residential installations this year.
In terms of installed battery capacity, Nevada is in the top 10 states in the United States, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA).
If developers bring all of the energy storage systems they have planned online by their targeted commercial operation dates, U.S. battery storage capacity could increase by 89% by the end of 2024, according to the EIA.
In addition, the EIA projects that by 2024, 81% of newly installed electric-producing capacity in the US will come from solar and battery storage. With a projected 58% share of new capacity, solar power is expected to dominate the market, followed by battery storage at 23%.
Recently, GreatGameInternational reported that according to the NERC assessment, the U.S. power grid may become unreliable this summer due to above-average demand conditions and decreased electrical supply, which could result from potential low wind or solar energy conditions.
2 Responses
Ts all a scam. Get back to oil.
Spend billions of tax payer dollars to make an inefficient, expensive and intermittent power generation system. Yes it’ll transform America’s energy future all right.