Xcel Energy wins up to $70M grant to help fund long duration energy storage
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Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) said Friday it has received a grant of as much as $70M from the U.S. Department of Energy to partially fund two long duration energy storage systems in Minnesota and Colorado.
The project in partnership with Form Energy will deploy two 100 MW battery systems at the site of Xcel (XEL) coal plants that are closing in Becker, Minnesota, and Pueblo, Colorado.
Once operational, the systems will allow Xcel (XEL) to store renewable energy such as solar and wind when it is being produced and later distribute the energy during periods of lower renewable production, the company said.
While most existing battery technologies serve fewer than eight hours of energy storage, Form Energy's iron-air batteries deliver electricity for up to 100 hours.
The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission previously approved the project to be located near the Sherco Solar installation, one of the largest solar developments in the U.S.; approval of the Colorado battery system from the Colorado Public Utilities Commission is still pending.

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