AES starts construction of its 400 MWh Energy Storage Project in Southern California

ES Alamitos, a subsidiary of The AES Corporation, has conducted the groundbreaking of a 400 megawatt-hour (MWh) battery-based energy storage system for Alamitos Energy Center (AEC) as part of a larger modernization and replacement project of the existing AES Alamitos Generating Station.

The energy storage facility in Long Beach will provide up to 400 MWh of local energy to ensure power flexibility and reliability for Southern California Edison (SCE) customers while helping the state meet its aggressive target of 100% clean energy by 2045.

While the AES Alamitos facility was procured specifically to provide power at times of peak demand, it will also support grid modernization, increase the integration of renewable energy, and lower costs and greenhouse gas emissions. Supplied by Fluence, a leading energy storage and technology services provider, the storage used for the project will include the company’s Advancion 5 batteries and control systems; when fully charged, the batteries will be able to supply power to tens of thousands of homes in milliseconds.

AES Southland was awarded a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) by SCE in 2014 to provide 100 MW of interconnected energy storage. It is part of a US$2 billion repowering initiative in Long Beach to replace aging natural gas peakers with a combination of efficient combined-cycle gas capacity and battery energy storage, which is now a viable alternative to replace traditional thermal generation to meet peak power demands.

Together with the AES AEC combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT), this project will result in more than US$132 million in local purchases, 1.48 million hours in construction-related work, and a payroll of over US$315 million.