RWE selects Wartsila to provide equipment for 40 MW solar energy storage project in Georgia

Wärtsilä has been awarded the contract to supply an engineered equipment delivery (EEQ) of a 40 MW/80 MWh DC-coupled solar plus storage system to the Hickory Park Solar project in Georgia, USA. The owner of the project is RWE Renewables, one of the world’s leading renewable energy companies.

The Wärtsilä system will enable a subsidiary of RWE Renewables, Hickory Park Solar, LLC, to sell nearly 200 MW of generation from the solar PV panels to Georgia Power Company. The order was booked by Wärtsilä in the fourth quarter of 2020. 

Wärtsilä’s sophisticated GEMS Digital Energy Platform will control the entire hybrid plant, comprising close to 200 MW solar PV and an 80 MWh GridSolv Quantum energy storage system. GEMS monitors, synchronize, and optimizes generation assets at increments of 100 milliseconds, using machine learning and historic and real-time data analytics to calibrate the type of generation needed at any specific time, all under a single portfolio.

Wärtsilä’s IntelliBidder auto-bidding solution allows Hickory Park Solar to provide Georgia Power a day-ahead firming solar plus storage profile, which will improve the predictability of the intermittent generation. The cloud-based IntelliBidder uses machine learning and algorithms based on automated and forecasted data, taking real-time trading and combining it with a smart control platform that provides value-based asset management and portfolio optimization.

In addition to GEMS, the Hickory Park Solar project will see the deployment of GridSolv Quantum, Wärtsilä’s next-generation energy storage system (ESS). The project is currently designed with CATL batteries. With functionality a key feature, GridSolv Quantum is a fully integrated modular and compact solution that enables a holistic and intuitive ESS, while maintaining a minimalist design to ease the scope and complexity of deployment activities. The solution also delivers the lowest lifecycle costs and the smallest system footprint.

Delivery of the Wärtsilä equipment is scheduled for September 2021, and the plant is expected to commence commercial operations in November of that year. Wärtsilä has previously delivered energy storage solutions to RWE Renewables in Texas and Arizona, USA.