Developer Black Mountain sells 200MW ERCOT BESS to woman-owned IPP Vitis

August 28, 2024
LinkedIn
Twitter
Reddit
Facebook
Email

IPP Vitis Energy has acquired a 200MW BESS project in the ERCOT, Texas market from developer Black Mountain Energy Storage (BMES).

The Apache Hill BESS project is located adjacent to the 2.4GW Comanche Peak nuclear power plant in Hood County, the second-largest generating unit in Texas.

Construction on the BESS should start immediately with commercial operations expected to begin in late 2026.

Duncan, VP of BMES said: “The Apache Hill project offers Vitis a unique opportunity to expedite its time to market via an advanced development project located at an advantaged position within the ERCOT system. Our teams worked seamlessly throughout the execution process, and we look forward to seeing the project support Texas’ reliable provision of electricity amidst an era of unprecedented demand growth.”

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Enjoy 12 months of exclusive analysis

Not ready to commit yet?
  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Annual digital subscription to the PV Tech Power journal
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

Stephanie Clarkson, CEO of Vitis Energy added: “With ERCOT’s dynamic landscape, making sure projects are in optimal locations is critical to ensuring grid reliability and the long-term success of a project.”

Vitis Energy is an independent power producer (IPP) formed in 2022, certified as a women’s business enterprise by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council in 2022, meaning it is at least 51% owned by one or more women actively involved in management. Most BESS IPPs in the ERCOT market are institutionally owned or male-led.

Black Mountain Energy Storage (BMES) was founded in 2021 but has become one of the most active BESS developers in Texas, where the grid operator is the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT).

The ERCOT market is the second-largest for grid-scale BESS in the US after California but is likely to have nearly 10GW online by October 2024. BESS investors are capitalising on some of the highest price spreads in the world and a huge ancillary services market, with ERCOT’s lack of interconnection with other parts of the US making it effectively an island grid.

In the last two years, BMES sold a 700MW portfolio to banking group UBS400MW/600MWh to developer Cypress Creek Renewables and 490MW to Peregrine Energy Solutions, all in ERCOT. In project development news, it secured approval for a 1.4GWh project in Wisconsin a year ago though it suffered a setback for a 240MWh project in Texas in July 2024 after a frosty reception from local stakeholders (Premium access).

2 December 2025
NH Collection Vittorio Veneto, Rome, Italy
Across two packed days, the Summit focused on three core themes: revenue & trading, the lifecycle of the battery, and optimisation tools. Attendees explored innovative strategies for enhancing asset performance and longevity, with a spotlight on key markets like Germany, Italy, and the UK. Stay tuned for details on the 2025 edition of the Battery Asset Management Summit Europe, where we’ll continue to chart the path forward for energy storage asset management.

Read Next

October 23, 2025
Calibrant Energy will deliver a 31MW/62MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) at Aligned Data Centres’ campus in the Pacific Northwest area of the US.
October 22, 2025
It has become harder to finance BESS projects in the US, according to Ronak Maheshwari, a director at CRC-IB.
October 22, 2025
Recurrent Energy has closed a construction financing for an energy storage project in Arizona. Meanwhile, Cypress Creek Renewables has reached financial close for its solar-plus-storage project in Colorado.
Premium
October 22, 2025
John Zahurancik, Americas president at Fluence, discussed industry trends and policy directions with ESN Premium at this year’s RE+.
October 21, 2025
Ameresco has put Arizona’s largest behind-the-meter battery energy storage system (BESS) into operation, meanwhile Alliant Energy has begun operating Wisconsin’s largest BESS to-date.

Most Popular

Email Newsletter