Energy Storage Study

The Department of Energy Resources (DOER) and Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (CEC) launched the Energy Storage Initiative in 2015, which includes a comprehensive study and funding for demonstration projects, to analyze opportunities to deploy electric energy storage on the Massachusetts grid and support the growth of storage companies in the Commonwealth.

After engaging a consultant team comprising of Customized Energy Solutions, Strategen Consulting, Alevo Analytics. Sustainable Energy Advantage and Daymark Energy Advisors and conducting a robust stakeholder process with over 300 organizations, the results of the study, State of Charge, are available.

The study found that energy storage is recognized as a game changer by the electric industry, which can modernize the way we generate and deliver electricity for the benefit of consumers.

State of Charge studies the potential benefits of incorporating energy storage technologies into Massachusetts’ energy portfolio. Recent advances in new storage technologies, such as grid-scale batteries, flywheels, and thermal storage, along with decreasing technology costs, are making wide-scale deployment of electricity storage viable.

The study analyzes the storage market landscape, opportunities for cost-effective deployment on the Massachusetts grid, and examines potential policies and programs to better support the storage industry in the Commonwealth.

2016 State of Charge Energy Storage Initiative Study

2016 State of Charge Energy Storage Initiative Executive Summary

2016 State of Charge Energy Storage Initiative EEA Press Release

Stakeholder Engagements

Meeting on October 30, 2015: As part of the study, MassCEC and DOER held a stakeholder meeting on Oct 30, 2015. The participants were invited to contribute their thoughts and insights on topics regarding the energy storage study such as industry challenges, market opportunities as well as barriers and challenges to overcome. The meeting included multiple breakout sessions where attendees were divided by market segment and asked to discuss the presented topics and then relate their conclusions.

The presentations for the stakeholder meeting are found here:

• Energy storage stakeholder kickoff meeting
• What’s driving energy storage deployment in the United States?

Session notes from the four breakout groups are as follows:

• Technologies and Project Developers
• Wholesale/Transmission Breakout Sessions
• Utility Applications – Distribution Breakout Sessions
• Distributed Energy Resources

Surveys in Nov, 2015: In November, the energy storage consultants administered the following surveys to receive more feedback from stakeholders:

• Technology Developers Sector Survey 
• Wholesale Sector Survey 
• Competitive Supplier Sector Survey 
• Distributed Energy Sector Survey 

Meeting on Dec 15, 2015: On Dec 15, 2015, the consultants held a webinar to update the stakeholders on the progress of the study and to invite more stakeholder feedback to inform the study. 

The presentation can be found here: Massachusetts Energy Storage Initiative Stakeholder Update Webinar.

Survey in Mar, 2015: On March 1st, 2015, the consultants sent out a survey to Massachusetts Energy Storage Initiative Email Subscribers/Participants and Stakeholders, who are interested in Massachusetts policies, markets, and opportunities related to energy storage. The purpose of the survey is to identify and rank stakeholder priorities regarding the study.

Here is the administered survey: MA Energy Storage Initiative Follow Up: Stakeholder Priorities

Related Meetings

Meeting on July 9, 2015: The Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (“DPU”) held a Stakeholder Conference (“Stakeholder Conference” or “Conference”)  to explore the regulatory issues related to the deployment of energy storage technologies. The agenda for that meeting can be found here.

Upcoming Programs

 Advancing Commonwealth Energy Storage (ACES) program - The Department of Energy Resources (DOER) and the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) are developing a request for proposals to demonstrate the business models for energy storage systems, under the state's $10 million Energy Storage Initiative. This program, expected to launch in the Fall 2016, will seek applications for business and finance model demonstrations of commercially-viable energy storage technologies. 

Further Details

If you would like to know more informtion regarding MassCEC'S activities on energy storage, please visit the main page found here. 

Contact Information

If you would like to be on our mailing list to stay informed about MassCEC’s energy storage activities or to send questions, comments and feedback, please email: grid@masscec.com