Dive Brief:

Southern California Edison (SCE) has signed contracts for 2,221 MW of power from new resources to meet it customers’ long-term electricity needs, including 250 MW of storage capacity, Greentech Media reports.

It is the first time SCE has contracted with energy storage projects through a competitive solicitation. The utility was required to seek at least 50 MW of storage.

The contracts, which seek to maintain reliability as the region deals with the closure of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station and anticipated retirement of older, natural gas generation plants, require California Public Utilities Commission approval.

Dive Insight:

Greentech Media points out that SCE had been required to sign contracts of 50 MW of storage, but wound up with five times that amount.

“This solicitation is the first time that such a wide range of new diverse resources were directly competing in the purchasing process,” said Colin Cushnie, SCE vice president of energy procurement and management. “No single energy source can give us everything we need all of the time, particularly with our emphasis to use environmentally clean resources. To provide for flexibility, we need to accommodate a mix of energy resources.”

via SoCal Edison signs contracts for 250 MW of energy storage | Utility Dive.