San Diego Zoo to Save $1.2 Million With Battery Storage

Energy Benefits With No Upfront Costs

PowerFlex worked with the San Diego Zoological Society to deploy a 1 megawatt (MW) / 4 megawatt-hour (MWh) onsite, behind-the-meter (BTM) battery storage solution that is expected to yield a cumulative energy savings of $1.2 million. The project was structured through an Energy Services Agreement that did not require the Zoo to commit upfront capital.

The storage project will lower the facility’s energy bill by utilizing the EDF Renewables Energy Management System (EMS), which anticipates spikes in energy demand and uses battery energy to satisfy them instead of drawing from utility electricity. The system does not require any solar generation, but instead will minimize energy costs by recharging when energy is at its lowest available rates, and later discharging that power to the Zoo when costs are highest.

Sustainability Impact

The battery’s charge and discharge operations also improve the San Diego Zoo’s sustainability contribution and support the local grid. By discharging and reducing spikes in the Zoo’s energy consumption when energy is most expensive, the battery system creates a more stable and manageable grid. Similarly, by reducing energy consumption during periods of expensive power, which correlate with periods of high natural gas production on the grid, the battery system reduces the Zoo’s carbon impact.

Performance-Based Payment

The Energy Services Agreement also allows the San Diego Zoo to pay PowerFlex based only on the actual utility bill savings realized by the Zoo as a result of the battery operation. Accordingly, the Zoo has no fixed payments and bears no performance risk on the operation of the system.