IPP Eolian has begun construction on Flint Grid, a 200MW/1.06GWh energy storage project in Jersey Township, Licking County, Ohio, US.
Announced 29 July, the Flint Grid battery energy storage system (BESS) project is located next to New Albany data centre and industrial load and is the first large-scale BESS to qualify for the PJM capacity market.
Flint Grid is also the largest BES to clear the 2027/28 Residual Capacity Auction, representing more than 50 percent of all new battery storage capacity in that capacity year.
The 2027/28 Reliability Pricing Model (RPM) Base Residual Auction (BRA) cleared 134,478.1MW of Unforced Capacity (UCAP) in PJM from annual, summer-period and winter-period matched resources.
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Natural gas dominated the cleared capacity mix at 43%, followed by nuclear at 21% and coal at 20%. Demand response accounted for 5%, hydro for 4%, while wind and oil each represented 2%, and solar comprised 1%.
On 14 July, PJM announced it had procured 138,318MW of unforced capacity generation (UCAP) and demand response from its 2028/29 Base Residual Auction.
In collaboration with governors from all 13 PJM states and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), PJM established a price collar for four capacity auctions “to protect both consumers and investors from market volatility.”
This was the third consecutive auction with the collar in place. Prices cleared at the FERC-approved cap of US$325/MW-day (UCAP) across the PJM footprint, down 2.5% from the previous 2027/28 auction cap of US$333.44/MW-day. The cap is calculated based on the accredited capacity of the PJM reference resource.
The Flint Grid Project is also the first grid-scale BESS permitted by the Ohio Power Siting Board and will be the largest BESS built to date in Ohio and PJM.
A 150MW/600MWh BESS brought into commercial operation by IPP Elevate Renewables in June is the largest standalone BESS in operation in PJM.
Eolian stated that it is actively collaborating with grid operators, regulators, and industry stakeholders on research and policy initiatives to advance BESS integration into wholesale electricity markets.
This work includes developing technical frameworks for optimal bidding protocols, new market products for energy storage participation, Effective Load Carrying Capability (ELCC) accreditation methodology, and revenue optimisation across multiple wholesale market segments, as well as recognising that strategically located battery storage projects can increase transmission capacity in constrained locations facing growing load demands.
Flint Grid is expected to enter commercial operation in advance of the 2027–2028 PJM capacity year.
Aaron Zubaty, founder and CEO of Eolian, stated of the project, “There’s growing consternation about how the US can rapidly scale infrastructure to support America’s growing electricity demand, but not nearly enough conversation about how to use existing technology to unlock the wasted capacity that already exists on the grid.”
Zubaty continued, “Flint Grid demonstrates how companies like Eolian have been investing in solutions to unlock the grid and reduce price pressures on consumers using proven and scalable technology. This project requires hundreds of millions of dollars to construct, and we committed the necessary capital and resources years before today’s demand forecasts became headline news. As policymakers consider changes to competitive electricity markets, it’s critical that they avoid undermining the long-term investments already underway that will make better use of existing transmission infrastructure and that create a bridge to further long-term supply expansion.”
Ohio and PJM
Also from Ohio, earlier this month, L-H Battery Company commenced lithium-ion (Li-ion) cell production at its Jeffersonville, plant, for automotive and stationary power applications.
The commencement was the culmination of a construction and workforce development effort that began when the joint venture was established in 2023 by South Korean battery giant LG Energy Solution (LG ES) and Japanese automaker Honda Motor Company.
In May, Energy-Storage.news Premium spoke with wholesale electricity policy expert, Andrew Levitt, and Dr Long Lam, managing energy associate at the Brattle Group, about PJM’s whitepaper released in response to calls from area governors and the Trump administration to overhaul its market rules.
The “Powering Reliability Through Market Design” whitepaper describes three distinct pathways for reform, each with different implications for how the nation’s largest wholesale electricity market will procure resources, manage costs, and integrate new technologies like BESS.
Central to PJM’s challenge is the capacity market’s single clearing price mechanism—long considered fundamental to restructured electricity markets—which is now under pressure from political forces that have capped prices below the cost of new entry.
