Xcel Energy has begun testing battery-storage technology that captures wind energy and moves it to the electricity grid when needed. This is the first U.S. application of the battery as a direct wind energy storage device.
S&C Electric Company was contracted to install the battery along
with the S&C Smart Grid Storage Management System (SMS). The SMS is
a fast-response automatic controller that interfaces between the stored
energy system and the utility, providing the ability to store energy in
a battery storage system, and to control the discharge of power when
required. It can address such issues as intermittent power production
with production peaks and valleys, VAR control on generation, SCADA
control of wind production, and improved integration of wind generation
into the standard generation production schedule. The project is
located in Beaver Creek, Minnesota, about 30 miles east of Sioux Falls,
South Dakota. The battery installation is adjacent and connected to a
nearby 11MW wind farm owned by Minwind Energy, LLC.