Xcel Energy has entered into definitive agreements with Form Energy, Inc. to deploy its iron-air battery systems at two of Xcel Energy's retiring coal plant sites. The storage technology will allow Xcel Energy to integrate more low-cost, renewable energy into its system and maintain reliability as it retires the coal plants in the coming years and transitions to a highly renewable future.
Xcel Energy–Minnesota will deploy a 10 MW/1,000 MWh multi-day storage system at the Sherburne County Generating Station in Becker, Minnesota. Xcel Energy–Colorado will deploy a 10 MW/1,000 MWh multi-day storage system at the Comanche Generating Station in Pueblo, Colorado. Both projects are expected to come online as early as 2025 and are subject to regulatory approvals in their respective states.
Form Energy and Xcel Energy collaborated on extensive modeling with Formware, Form Energy’s next-generation investment and operational modeling tool for power grids. This modeling helped Xcel Energy validate how Form’s multi-day storage will enhance Xcel Energy’s ability to reliably and cost-effectively integrate large amounts of wind energy and other renewable resources on its system. Additionally, this analysis demonstrated that Form Energy’s 100-hour iron-air battery technology will strengthen the grid against normal day-to-day, week-to-week, and season-to-season weather variability, in addition to extreme weather events including severe winter storms and polar vortex events.
