JUNE 16, 2022 — Recurrent Energy, LLC (“Recurrent”), a wholly owned subsidiary of Canadian Solar Inc. (“Canadian Solar”) (NASDAQ: CSIQ), today announced the acquisition of two standalone energy storage projects from Black Mountain Energy Storage (BMES). The projects, which are in the South Load Zone of the Texas ERCOT market, are each anticipated to store up to 200 MWh of energy. Both projects are currently in development and are anticipated to reach notice to proceed (NTP) in 2023 and begin operation in the second quarter of 2024.
Recurrent has developed 2.9 GWh of energy storage projects that are in construction or operation and has an additional pipeline of 15.5 GWh of projects under early to mid-stage development. The two standalone energy storage projects added to Recurrent’s development pipeline will be operated as merchant projects in the ERCOT market, providing dispatchable and reliable power to the grid. Recurrent will continue to develop the projects, finalize entitlements and designs, select and procure equipment, raise project financing, and construct the facilities.
Dr. Shawn Qu, chairman and CEO of Canadian Solar, said, “ERCOT is one of the fastest growing markets in the world for energy storage, driven by market demand for flexible capacity. We are pleased to accelerate our ERCOT storage pipeline with the acquisition of two projects totaling 400 MWh of storage from Black Mountain Energy Storage. We look forward to bringing our storage development, financing and construction experience to bear as we bring these projects to fruition and increase grid reliability for Texans.”
According to Wood Mackenzie’s US Energy Storage Monitor report, in 2021 annual deployments of grid-scale storage nearly tripled year-over-year, to over 3.5 gigawatts, with California and Texas as leaders. The South Zone in ERCOT is an attractive area for storage development due to the abundance of coastal wind and solar power. Battery storage enables stored power to be used during times of peak demand, improving reliability.
Provided by: Canadian Solar Inc.