(Danville) — Danville leaders are endorsing plans for a second battery storage facility in the city.
Utility Director Jason Gray told the Utility Commission Monday more about plans for a 12-megawatt battery storage project on Mount Cross Road where a former propane plant closed down back in the fifties.
He says peak power costs are expected to go up exponentially over the next few years. “Our transmission peak is based on our highest peak hour of the year. That could be during the summer months or the winter months,” Gray said. “This year it was in January during an early winter morning.”
Transmission rates from American Electric Power are expected to increase to 12-dollars per kilowatt hour next year. That’s six times higher than it was just a few years ago. Those same rates from PJM are forecast to increase nine-fold.
The proposed facility would be used exclusively for “peak shaving.” It would power up during non-peak periods, providing power only on the hottest and coldest days when energy use is at its highest. This reduces Danville Utilities’ exposure to rising transmission and capacity rates.
Under the plan, the city would partner with Lightshift Energy in a purchase power agreement. Gray estimates the facility would save up to 20 million dollars over the life of the project. “Those savings are passed directly on to our customers. That helps to keep rates as low as possible,” Gray told the Commission. “They are other components of the rate that we cannot control.”
And Gray says the neighbors on Mount Cross likely won’t notice a thing. “These are containers that have hundreds of batteries in them. They are self-contained. There are air conditioners that push the heat out,” Gray explained. “They have sensors that can tell if one unit is getting overheated or if one unit needs maintenance.”
Gray says they will try to get a grant from the Tobacco Commission to help pay for the facility.
It was two years ago when the city opened a battery storage facility on Monument Street operated by DeLorean Energy. It can provide up to two-and-a-half hours of peak power peak periods. That facilities saves the city about $1.2 million in a year. Gray expects similar savings from the new facility.
The Commission voted unanimously Monday to recommend Danville City Council sign off on the effort. Gray says they hope to have it operational by April of 2026.