Duke Energy Florida has launched an innovative ‘Bring Your Own Battery’ study to learn more about customer use of battery technology and explore opportunities to leverage existing battery energy storage systems to improve grid resiliency. Eligible participants are residential Duke Energy Florida customers who currently have batteries installed in their homes to provide backup power in case of an outage.
During the 12-month study, Duke Energy will be able to call on the energy stored in these devices to support the grid during times of peak demand. The expectation is to reduce energy costs for participants and give customers the opportunity to participate directly in the company’s transition to clean energy
“Batteries are an exciting technology that will play a significant and evolving role in how energy is delivered to customers now and in the future,” said Melissa Seixas, Duke Energy Florida state president. “With the introduction of studies like BYOB, we are developing ways to provide even greater value to our customers while improving energy resiliency and advancing solar technologies in Florida.”
Duke Energy is working with vendors including Sunrun, Generac, SolarEdge and Virtual Peaker. These companies will offer existing battery customers in Florida the opportunity to participate in the BYOB battery study, for which they will be compensated monetarily, according to a spokesperson for Duke Energy.
“We want to provide innovative solutions that increase grid resilience and expand home backup power options,” said Mary Powell, Sunrun chief executive officer. “Sunrun’s partnership with Duke Energy will provide affordable, clean, backup power solutions for households in Florida, while also supporting grid reliability at the community level. This study is an example of how collaboration can accelerate the transition to a clean energy future.”
Duke Energy Florida, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, owns a diverse generation mix of natural gas, coal and renewables. The company has clean energy goals of at least a 50% carbon reduction by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Duke reports that it is on track to own or purchase 16,000 megawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2025, and is investing in major electric grid upgrades and expanded battery storage, and exploring zero-emitting power generation technologies such as hydrogen and advanced nuclear.
Last fall Duke announced a project with Honeywell to test flow batteries, which use an electrolyte to convert chemical energy into electricity for storage and deployment. That project is scheduled to begin this year at Duke Energy’s Emerging Technology and Innovation Center in Mount Holly, North Carolina. Another study, announced last year, is a partnership between Duke and Malta Inc., in which the two companies plan to test a novel approach to turning coal-fired plants into energy storage solutions.
This story was updated on Jan. 21, 2022 to note that participants will be monetarily compensated.
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It sounds good, but what’s in it for the homeowner? The owner of the battery system is allowing Duke Energy to use the power for what amount of compensation? If it is simply net metering, that’s a bad deal for the owner when considering long term battery degradation and the amount the owner paid for the battery system.