S&C Electric Company recently deployed six 25-kW PureWave Community Energy Storage (CES) systems at its global headquarters in Chicago. The 150-kW energy storage system provides fast-response frequency regulation for the PJM market, the world’s largest competitive wholesale electricity market serving over 61 million people in 13 states and the District of Columbia.

Ancillary grid services, such as frequency regulation, are crucial for maintaining the stability and reliability of the power system. Frequency regulation is used to minimize the mismatch between generation and loads by quickly adjusting generation output to maintain the grid’s ideal frequency – 60 Hz in parts of the world and 50 Hz in others. Historically, fossil-fueled fired generating plants have provided a majority of such services, but response times often exceeded 20 minutes.  In 2011, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued Order 755, which mandated higher rates for fast-responding frequency regulation sources.

“Energy storage is the ideal solution for providing frequency regulation within seconds rather than minutes,” says Troy Miller, manager, Business Development and Product Management, Power Quality Products, S&C Electric Company. “Selling into the fast frequency regulation market gives customers another way to monetize energy storage benefits, ultimately making a strong business case for energy storage investment.”

S&C is selling its CES-stored electricity to PJM through Intelligent Generation, which offers a networked software platform that facilitates optimization and bidding of distributed energy resources into wholesale electricity markets.

“Unlocking the value in energy storage is the key to a cleaner, more efficient grid,” says Jay Marhoefer, CEO and co-founder, Intelligent Generation. “Our patented software enables S&C’s PureWave Community Energy Storage system to operate as a virtual power plant, and help system owners, like S&C, create new revenue streams for their assets.”

In order to sell into the fast-response frequency regulation market, PJM requires systems to pass a series of tests that measure the accuracy, delay and precision between PJM’s regulation signal and the system’s output. PJM rejects any system that does not meet a minimum of 75%; S&C’s system passed with an average performance score of 97%.

“The system is now participating in the market on a daily basis,” says Tim Qualheim, VP, Strategic Solutions, S&C. “Our doors are open, and we are excited to welcome customers, industry professionals and regulators to see how we are making this system work for the grid and how to maximize the multiple benefits of energy storage.”

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