It is part of the Ludington Pumped Storage Plant. This simple technology uses water pipes from a lower reservoir (the lake in this instance) to an upper reservoir. Then, water is released downhill via supersized turbines.
These systems are often called “the world’s biggest batteries” by their ability to store large amounts of energy that can be used for the power grid.
Hydropower industry sees pumped storage as the best solution to the question of where to get power in the absence of sunlight or wind.
“I wish there were 10 more. Eric Gustad (community affairs manager at Consumers Energy), said that he loves ‘em during a tour of Ludington.
The utility, which is based in Jackson Michigan, does not have such plans. Consumers sold another site close to the lake many years ago due to logistical and environmental challenges. The company is now partnering with DTE Energy to upgrade the plant.
Gustad stated that building a new one is “not financially feasible.” “Unless we get some assistance from the federal or state government, I don’t see it happening anytime soon.”
STUCK IN THE NEUTRAL
This company’s decision highlights the problems facing pumped Storage in the U.S., where these systems account to about 93% of the utility-scale energy in reserve. Analysts see a rising demand for power storage but the industry’s growth has slowed.
There are 43 pumped storage facilities in the country with combined capacities of 22 gigawatts. This is equivalent to that of a dozen nuclear power plants. Yet, only one operation has been added to the nation since 1995. It’s not known how many of the more than 90 planned pumped storage facilities can overcome logistical, regulatory, and economic obstacles that cause long delays.
Three projects have been granted licenses by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. However, none of them are currently being built. The developers of the long-planned Oregon facility anticipate that work will begin in 2023. A Montana company has been granted a license for five years. Before construction can begin, a utility must be purchased to operate the plant or buy its storage capacity.
Nevertheless, there are more than 60 being built around the world, mainly in Europe, India and China.
Malcolm Woolf, President of the National Hydropower Association, complained that the permitting process was “crazy” during a January hearing before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. He said it involved too many agencies.
Celeste Miller, spokesperson for FERC, stated that although FERC allows new facilities to be built and relicenses those already licensed, there are other federal, state, and tribal offices that can play a role. Every project is different. She said that each project has its own unique challenges.
Industry lobbyists are pushing for an investment credit similar to the one that solar and wind receive. The tax break is included in President Joe Biden’s Build back Better plan, but it remains stuck in Congress.
Pumped storage was first developed in the 1930s. However, most of these systems were constructed decades later to store excess electricity from nuclear power plants and then release it as needed.
These storage units also provide a safety net for sudden power outages. Woolf stated that when a New England nuclear reactor went offline in 2020, the lights in Boston did not flicker because there were two backup power sources.
The market for reserve power will likely grow as nuclear, coal, and natural gas plants are able to operate continuously. However, solar and wind can’t. National Renewable Energy Laboratory models indicate that the U.S. storage capacity could increase fivefold by 2050.
Last year, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm stated that “we’re going to bring hundreds if not thousands of gigawatts clean energy onto the grid in the next few years”
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Australian National University engineers used computer mapping to identify more than 600,000. These sites, including 32,000 in the U.S., could store 100 times as much energy as needed to sustain a global renewable electricity network.
The study did not examine whether the sites could meet cultural or environmental protection standards, or if they would be economically viable. The website acknowledges that “Many, or even all… might prove to be unsuitable.”
Pumped storage is not popular with environmentalists. This is because reservoirs are often made by hydropower dams that block fish passages and cause water quality problems. They also emit methane which can be a powerful greenhouse gas. Most plants draw water continuously from rivers.
Recent designs call for “closed loop” systems, which tap an underground or surface supply and then cycle the water between reservoirs. Water would only be added to compensate for any evaporation and leaks.
The Hydropower reform Coalition represents conservation groups and says it may support such projects in “very limited circumstances.”
Some are still resisting, such as the Goldendale Energy Storage Project from Washington state. It would pipe water from two reservoirs measuring 60 acres (24.3 hectares) on opposite sides of a hill.
Rye Development, which is leading the project, said that the facility could supply power to nearly 500,000 homes for 12 hours. The facility is currently in the process of obtaining FERC licensing. It will be online by 2028, but it still requires a state water quality permit.
Environmental groups are concerned about the impact on wildlife habitat and wetlands, while tribal leaders fear that the project will encroach upon sacred sites.
Bridget Moran, associate director at American Rivers, said that “What are you willing to sacrifice in order to get this technology online?”
Developers claim that the project will include the cleanup of the lower reservoir.
To help developers locate the best locations, the U.S. Department of Energy launched a web-based tool.
Recent Michigan Technological University study found hundreds of abandoned U.S. miners that could be used as pumped storage. The reservoirs are located at the surface or close to it, and the lower ones below.
The report states that they are near enough to transmission and distribution infrastructure as well as to solar and wind generation facilities.
Roman Sidortsov (study co-leader and energy policy associate professor) said that all these holes are ready to go.
However, while decommissioned mines may be better for the environment than others, a project in New York’s Essex County was stalled due to water pollution concerns.
COMPETITIVE FUTURE
New technologies are being developed as the market for stored electricity grows.
Texas-based Quidnet Energie has created a pumped storage system that pumps water underground and holds it among rock layers before releasing it to power turbines. In March, the company announced a partnership with San Antonio’s municipal utility.
Energy Vault is a Swiss startup that designed a crane using renewable energy to lift and stack 35-ton bricks. The bricks can be lowered using cables that spin a generator when energy is required.
For the moment, batteries are the dominant competitor to pumped storage systems, which can produce power for 8 to 16 hours. Most lithium-ion batteries last for around four hours, but there are longer-lasting options.
“Are we going get to the point when an eight-hour battery will be cheaper than a pump storage plant?” Paul Denholm, an analyst at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, said that this is the billion-dollar question.
A 2016 Energy Department Report stated that the U.S. network could have 36 gigawatts new pumped storage capacity.
Cameron Schilling, vice-president of markets at the hydropower association, stated that pumped storage is not the end-all and be-all of storage. However, it is a crucial part of our storage future. It is essential to decarbonize the system.
