Duke Energy brings online 50 MW BESS at former coal plant
The first BESS, at a cost of USD 100 million, was completed ahead of schedule, serving customers in North Carolina and South Carolina, beginning in November. Final testing is being completed this month. Construction of a second BESS will begin in May.
Duke Energy has brought online a 50-megawatt, four-hour BESS at its former Allen coal plant on Lake Wylie, serving customers in North Carolina and South Carolina, and has unveiled plans for additional battery storage and new jobs at the Gaston County site.
The first BESS, at a cost of approximately USD 100 million, was completed under budget and ahead of schedule, serving customers beginning in November. Final testing is being completed this month. Construction of a second BESS — Duke Energy’s largest, a 167‑MW, four-hour system — will begin in May on 10 acres where the coal plant’s now-demolished emissions control system once stood, the company said in a media release.
“We’re building new resources to keep the Carolinas’ economy thriving, while reinvesting in a former coal plant community that helped power this region for decades,” said Kendal Bowman, Duke Energy’s North Carolina president. “Repurposing existing energy infrastructure and taking advantage of federal funding significantly offset costs for our customers while continuing to support rapid growth across the region.”
Duke Energy plans to make similar battery storage investments in multiple counties across the Carolinas. The company’s long-term plan maintains a diverse energy mix, adding solar, storage, nuclear and natural gas generation to meet electricity demand, the media release said.
“We are proud of how this site and its people continue to support our customers,” said Bryan Walsh, Duke Energy’s vice president of Regulated Renewables and Lake Services. “Multiple former Allen plant employees now work on our Regulated Renewables team, which maintains and operates the new batteries at Allen and elsewhere in the Carolinas.”
