The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced a $28.7 million investment for the City of Tallahassee Electric & Gas Utility’s selected project to deploy a utility-scale BESS to provide backup power to facilities providing critical services, like nursing homes and community centers.
The BESS project, supported by a Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program Grid Resilience Grant, is also expected to provide an estimated overall annual fuel cost savings of $160,000 to benefit municipal utility customers.
The utility will implement a BESS at the Birmingham Street Substation to provide backup power during disruptive events and ensure continued operation of four facilities to provide essential services to the community: Lawrence-Gregory Community Center; Lincoln Center; Miracle Hill Nursing and Rehabilitation Center; and Tallahassee Senior Center.
The utility will engage the Resilient Infrastructure and Disaster Response (RIDER) Center at FAMU-FSU College of Engineering, local universities, community-based organizations, and residents, to develop and implement a Community Benefits Agreement. The project will also issue 30 Clean Energy Trades certificates to trainees, among other workforce opportunities.
Under the Biden-Harris Administration’s leadership, the U.S. is projected to build more new electric generation capacity in 2024, while also mobilizing to upgrade existing transmission lines. This includes catalyzing nationwide collaboration on modern grid technologies and funding their deployment, accelerating transmission permitting, and increasing grid capacity to support electricity demand to support increased electrification, data centers, and manufacturing.
