Battery storage system to offer electricity to 7,500 customers

Orange and Rockland Utilities (O&R) and Convergent Energy and Power announced the completion of a 12MW/57 MWh battery storage system in Warwick. The system is the first non-wires alternative project of its kind in Orange County.

Designed, constructed, and operated by Convergent, the system will deliver more cost-effective, reliable, and sustainable electricity to 7,500 O&R customers in the Town of Warwick, the Village of Warwick, and parts of the villages of Florida and Greenwood Lake and the hamlet of Pine Island.

Energy storage (typically battery storage) offers utilities a way to increase capacity on the electric grid by charging the batteries when electricity demand is low and discharging them back onto the grid when high demand could impact supply. This program stems from O&R’s concerted effort to reduce costs for customers and incorporate new technologies to maintain efficient, resilient, reliable, and sustainable electric operations.

Through a competitive bidding process, O&R selected Convergent to cost-effectively increase capacity at its Wisner substation in Warwick, creating benefits for customers by supplementing electric supply on high-demand days and providing substation backup, thereby increasing service reliability. As wholesale and retail energy markets develop and mature, Convergent will be able to sell power from battery storage system into those markets to earn additional revenue, further reducing the cost of the system.

“This project represents a positive, innovative achievement in O&R’s continuous efforts to provide more sustainable, local power while minimizing its costs to our customers,” O&R President and CEO Robert Sanchez said. “The battery project opens the door to a more sustainable energy future for our customers.”

The 12MW solution is composed of three separate 4MW battery storage systems. Two of the systems are located on property owned by the Warwick Valley Central School District, and the third system is located within the Village of Warwick.

The battery system supports New York State’s initiative to install 3,000 MW of energy storage by 2030. Under the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) passed in 2018, New York State is mandated to achieve 70% renewable energy by 2030 and 100% zero-emission electricity by 2040.