EDF Renewables North America has coupled its 300 MW solar energy system in California with a 600 MW battery energy storage plant to ensure consumers are able to use clean energy during peak demand periods.

Coupling solar generation with energy storage will enable the utility to smoothen energy bills for consumers in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties, the company has said in a statement. The project will allow consumers to use electricity generated using a less expensive energy resource than traditionally-used conventional and fossil fuels including coal.

This means fewer energy charges and reductions in carbon footprint for both the energy generator/provider and the consumer. Customers in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties will be able to benefit from the project as a result of EDF Renewables North America signing a power purchase agreement with Clean Power Alliance.

The project will be developed in Riverside County in an area which the Federal Bureau of Land Management reserved for utility-scale renewable energy projects.

The Desert Quartzite Solar-plus-Storage Project is set to be operational from February 2024 and is expected to generate enough energy to power 163,000 households, equivalent to avoiding over 669,000 metric tons of carbon emissions or the emissions from more than 145,000 passenger vehicles per annum.

The project will utilize horizontal single-axis tracking solar PV technology, which tracks the sun to collect more solar energy and is expected to create more than 800 construction jobs.

Ted Bardacke, executive director of the Clean Power Alliance indicated that solar-plus-storage projects will help the US expand its portfolio of low-carbon energy, ensure more green jobs are created and decarbonisation goals are met whilst ensuring customer services are maintained.