SDG&E completes 40MW BESS, starts work on 39MW of battery-enabled microgrids

LinkedIn
Twitter
Reddit
Facebook
Email

California investor-owned utility SDG&E has completed construction of a 40MW battery energy storage system (BESS) and started work on four storage-enabled microgrids totalling 39MW.

The utility announced yesterday (12 October) it had started testing on the 40MW project in Fallbrook, a small region between San Diego and Los Angeles, and begun building one of the four microgrid projects. It now has 95MW of utility-owned energy storage and another 200MW in development.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Enjoy 12 months of exclusive analysis

  • 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

The Fallbrook project is a 40MW/160MWh system, with four-hour duration being a condition for providing capacity to utilities like SDG&E under Resource Adequacy, the California Independent System Operator’s (CAISO) means of ensuring there is enough supply to meet demand, plus a reserve margin. The project will be connected to the state’s energy market once testing has been completed.

The Elliott Microgrid in San Diego, the first of the four being built, will be able to provide power to essential services. Those are the Fire Station 39, the Tierrasanta Public Library (which acts as a Cool Zone during extreme heatwaves), Tierrasanta Medical Center, Jean Farb Middle School, Canyon Hills High School, and Tierrasanta and Kumeyaay Elementary Schools.

“Innovations like storage and microgrids are vital to building a more resilient electric grid that can extend the availability of renewable energy into peak demand hours and better prepare communities to manage through emergencies,” said SDG&E vice president of energy innovation Miguel Romero.

As Energy-Storage.news recently reported, BESS capacity had a major role to play in the CAISO grid’s mitigation of extreme heatwaves sweeping the Golden State. CAISO’s latest figures show it had 4,367MW of BESS connected to the grid as of 1 October 2022.

Recent large-scale projects to have been completed and connected to the grid include AES’ 908MWh system, a 387MW co-located BESS from NextEra and a 200MW one from EDF.

Read Next

July 18, 2025
As we move through this decisive decade for clean energy, Asia’s energy storage market is stepping firmly onto the global stage.
July 18, 2025
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) has made grid-forming BESS a priority for the National Electricity Market (NEM) and South West Interconnected System (SWIS) for 2026.
July 17, 2025
D.E. Shaw Renewable Investments (DESRI) has started construction at a 150MW solar-plus-storage project in the US state of New Mexico, the BESS for which will be manufactured in the US by LG Energy Solution.
July 16, 2025
London Stock Exchange-listed Gore Street Energy Storage Fund (GSF) has entered into an agreement to sell its investment tax credits (ITCs) for the Big Rock energy storage project in California, US.
Premium
July 16, 2025
California community choice aggregator Ava Community Energy’s new BESS offtake agreements with EDP Renewables incorporate measures to share policy risks.

Most Popular

Email Newsletter