PNM, the wholly-owned New Mexico utility subsidiary of PNM Resources, Inc., announced an agreement to partner with Sandia National Laboratories in research and development (R&D) projects focused on energy resiliency, clean energy, and national security. The partnership demonstrates PNM Resources' commitment to an environmental, social, and governance (ESG) strategy with projects supporting the company's emissions-free energy goals and plans for a reliable, resilient, and secure grid to deliver New Mexico's clean energy future.
PNM and the National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC (NTESS) will capitalize on their combined expertise to assess current and future energy storage technologies in addition to other future technologies that may provide greater flexibility in the electric system and enhance the efficient use of carbon-free generation technologies. Advances may include networked microgrids, virtual power plants, highly efficient distributed and centralized storage systems, and reconfigurable grid architectures that provide added resilience.
"Our goal for 100% emissions-free energy requires advanced resources to bridge the technological gap," said Pat Vincent-Collawn, PNM Resources' chairman, president, and CEO. "We are fortunate to have a national laboratory in Albuquerque and the combination of their expertise, technologies, and resources with our team's industry experience is an ideal collaboration to solve this challenge. We look forward to this opportunity for shared learning and progress."
"The partnership with PNM will address energy challenges not just in New Mexico but across the United States," Sandia Labs Director James Peery said. "This agreement provides a pathway for Sandia's advanced technologies to be put to the test in a real-world system, while advancing the goals of electric power system resiliency and safety that are critical to national security."
PNM and Sandia National Laboratories previously collaborated in the nation's first combined solar-plus-storage facility to be fully integrated into a utility power grid in 2011, using smart grid technology to advance renewable energy. The Prosperity Energy Storage Project was highly acclaimed and its resulting data has been studied by numerous research organizations and used by commercial developers across the globe in the development of battery storage technology that is now being implemented on a larger scale worldwide.
A Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) is an agreement between a government agency or federal laboratory and a nonfederal entity to work together on R&D to bolster collaboration. The umbrella CRADA between PNM and NTESS covers multiple projects and technologies, allowing research collaborations in several areas.
