Maryland PSC Approves Storage Pilots, Including Utility-Owned Projects

The Maryland PSC approved six energy storage pilots proposed by the three Exelon utilities (Pepco, Delmarva, BGE), which include three utility-owned projects

The approved storage pilot projects are as follows:

BGE's Fairhaven Project

• Utility owned

• 2.5 MW/7.1 MWh of initial usable capacity

BGE's Chesapeake Beach Project

• Third-party owned and operated (Ameresco)

• 2.0 MWh initial capacity

Pepco's National Harbor Project

• Utility-owned but third-party operated

• 1.05 MW/4.25 MWh initial capacity

Pepco's Montgomery County Project

• Owned and developed by AlphaStructure

• Pepco will have the contractual right to use 3 MWh over a 3 hour period up to 10 days per year over a 10 year period

• Batteries will sometimes be charged by solar photovoltaic arrays at the site

Delmarva's Elk Neck Project

• Delmarva to contract with Sunverge Energy, which would purchase behind-the-meter energy storage systems to be installed in 110 homes in Elk Neck.

• Systems to be networked together to allow them to operate as a virtual power plant capable of providing 0.5 MW/1.5 MWh of aggregated capability

Delmarva's Ocean City Project

• Utility-owned and operated lithium ion battery energy storage systems

• 1.0 MW/3.6 MWh initial capacity.

See more details on each of the proposed pilots here

The PSC conditioned approval on, among other things, all projects being required to participate in available PJM wholesale revenue markets

The PSC said that it will address cost allocation to customers of pilot program costs as part of any rate case in which a utility seeks to recover costs incurred as part of the pilots

The PSC denied Potomac Edison's proposed Little Orleans Energy Storage, which Potomac Edison had withdrawn, and deferred consideration of Potomac Edison's Town Hill project until the utility files a second proposed pilot, as, "there is a strong interest in considering both of Potomac Edison's project proposals together."

Case 9619