The California battery plant fire started during the energy storage boom

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AUSTIN, Texas (AP) – A fire at one of the world’s largest battery plants in Northern California contained tens of thousands of lithium batteries that store energy from renewable energy and have become a growing source of electricity.

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In the long run, California and Texas are opening more battery projects than anywhere else in the US, bolstering energy reliability in two major states where severe weather caused by climate change has caused power shortages and blackouts.

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A fire that started Thursday at the Vistra Energy battery plant in Moss Landing, about 80 kilometers (about 130 miles) south of San Francisco, prompted the evacuation of 1,700 people, closed part of the 1 Freeway and caused large flames and and a large amount of smoke. The cause is still under investigation.

Experts say lithium batteries are a safe technology critical to reducing carbon emissions and making grids more reliable. However, residents near the fire have expressed concern about the impact.

In Texas, facing another blast of Arctic winter weather next week, officials have found batteries to help shore up the state’s independent grid, which was pushed to the brink of collapse during a deadly 2021 winter storm.

Here’s how and why batteries thrive in these two regions:

Battery upgrade

Both Texas and California are experiencing blackouts while trying to meet the energy needs of tens of millions of people and industries, including artificial intelligence and data centers.

Batteries soak up excess wind and solar energy for later use. That backup supply helps the grid during times of peak demand, such as during a heat wave, when air conditioning use is heavy.

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The cost of lithium batteries has dropped significantly, increasing their popularity. For lithium-ion electric car batteries, for example, prices have fallen by nearly 90 percent between 2008 and 2022, according to the US Department of Energy’s Office of Automotive Technology.

Cheap lithium has made utility-scale batteries more expensive than natural gas alternatives. Batteries can be charged and discharged in a matter of seconds.

Texas is scrambling to add more power

The Texas grid is rapidly gaining scale batteries and added 5 gigawatts of storage last year, helping to keep up with demand and avoid blackouts.

The 2021 shutdown and the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act helped fuel the expansion. Texas’ rugged terrain has also allowed wind and solar projects to develop quickly and easily, increasing demand for batteries.

“There’s very little red tape that the electric industry has to go through in Texas,” said Joshua Rhodes, an energy researcher at the University of Texas at Austin. “Texas generally does not have laws that restrict development.”

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Some experts say the cheap cost of batteries is fueling their rapid adoption more than anything, however.

“I don’t think it’s a matter of regulation as much as economic efficiency,” said Jay Turner, a professor of environmental science at Wellesley College. “The price of batteries and renewables has dropped so much that batteries and solar and wind, combined, are more expensive to compete with.”

California leads the way

The state has long pursued sustainable energy and in 2002 created a set of clean energy standards that the International Energy Agency considers one of the nation’s most powerful.

As solar and wind became more popular, there were concerns that it would be a big challenge to integrate that energy into the grid because of its central location.

“Even back in 2005, it looked like anything more than 15% renewables on the grid was impossible,” said Sally Benson, a professor of energy engineering at Stanford University. Last year California had more than 11 gigawatts of utility-scale storage on the grid.

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Part of California’s motivation for action comes from the power shortage. In 2020 the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) ordered rolling blackouts because the grid was overloaded with demand during a heat wave.

Since then several gigawatts of battery storage have been added, the main reason CAISO hasn’t ordered a rotating outage in nearly four years, according to Denise Grab, an energy policy researcher at the University of California, Los Angeles.

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Lathan is a member of the Associated Press/Reporting America Statehouse News Initiative team. Report for America is a national nonprofit service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on hidden stories.

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