According to S&P Global, an energy research and consulting company based in London, battery storage capacity in the U.S. increased by 52% year-over-year to 10.777 gigawatts by the end of the first quarter of 2023. While California maintained its leading position for total battery storage in the nation, Texas added the most capacity for the first three months of 2023 ending with 3.287 GW of U.S. capacity. The Lone Star state drove more growth than other state, contributing 30.6% of battery storage capacity.
As the largest energy-consuming state in the nation, Texas also produced more electricity than any other state in 2022. In that same year, Texas led all states in wind-generation electricity, accounting for 26% of overall wind energy.
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, a nonprofit organization that ensures reliable electric service for 90% of the state of Texas, notes that there are more than 26 million customers in the ERCOT region, nearly the population of Texas. Just 1 megawatt of electricity can power about 200 Texas homes during the peak of demand. According to the Commodity Insights report from S&P Global, the U.S. added more than 700 MW of capacity during the first quarter, 7% more from the end of 2022.
Of the six largest battery storage projects completed between January and March 2023, four belonged to ERCOT:
The two other projects belonged to the Western Electricity Coordinating Council Region which includes the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia, the northern portion of Baja California, Mexico and all or portions of the 14 Western states between:
A recent report from the U.S. Energy Storage Monitor report, published by the American Clean Power Association and Wood Mackenzie, projected that the grid-scale project pipeline will contribute approximately 8.9 GW energy storage capacity in 2023. Across all industry segments, the forecasted capacity for 2023 is anticipated to reach 10.5 GW.
