• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 

2

Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'

3

Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics

1

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 

2

Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'

3

Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics
AES

Big Batteries Will Help Bring Clean Energy to San Diego

By
Katie Fehrenbacher
Katie Fehrenbacher
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Katie Fehrenbacher
Katie Fehrenbacher
Down Arrow Button Icon
August 19, 2016, 12:09 PM ET
Courtesy of AES Energy Storage

The region around San Diego will soon get two big battery projects that will help the local utility add in more clean energy and better manage the power grid.

The batteries are being built by an arm of power giant AES, called AES Energy Storage, and the company has been building such projects for close to a decade.

The project is one of a growing number of planned battery farms in California and other states, as utilities look for better and greener options to generate and deliver energy to their customers and meet the state’s regulations. Building owners are also buying energy from batteries to lower their monthly energy bills.

These farms are being built by not just AES’s division, but also by electric car maker Tesla (TSLA), by conglomerate GE (GE) and a list of startups including Advanced Microgrid Solutions and Stem.

On Thursday AES Energy Storage announced that it’s won two contracts with utility San Diego Gas & Electric to develop two battery projects—in the cities of Escondido and El Cajon—that will total 37.5 megawatts in capacity. That means combined the battery farms will be able to supply 37.5 megawatts on demand to the utility for a four-hour period whenever the utility might need it.

For more on Tesla’s batteries for homes and businesses, watch:

It’s not a ton of energy on demand, but San Diego Gas & Electric can use the batteries to store excess solar and wind energy, and tap into that power when their customers are using a lot of electricity, like on a hot summer’s day. 37.5 megawatts is about the size of a small solar farm; a large natural gas or coal plant can generate several hundred megawatts of power.

It won’t be the biggest project by AES in California. That would be a more than 100 megawatt project for utility Southern California Edison in the Los Angeles area.

But the San Diego projects are still pretty big considering these projects are just starting to get built. AES says when the Escondido battery plant is built by next January, it will be the largest operating one in the U.S.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

The San Diego projects will use batteries from Samsung SDI, the battery arm of Korean electronics giant Samsung. AES buys batteries from companies and packages them up with electronics, power management tools, and software and sticks them in shipping containers.

The company has also used batteries from LG Chem, Parker Hannifin, and back in the day, A123 Systems. In addition, AES has an agreement with Tesla and could potentially use its battery packs for its projects.

Tesla batteries installed at the La Crema Winery in Windsor, Calif. The roof is also covered in solar panels. Courtesy of Katie Fehrenbacher, Fortune
Courtesy of Katie Fehrenbacher, Fortune

 

While Tesla might have made energy storage cool, the Arlington, Virginia-based AES Energy Storage has been building these types of projects since 2007. The company now has 136 megawatts of batteries installed and operating and another 296 megawatts of batteries under construction or in late stages of development.

The company has battery projects in places like Ohio, Northern Chile and the Atacama Desert, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Northern Ireland, the Netherlands, and Maryland.

Assuming Tesla merges with solar company SolarCity (SCTY), the combined company will likely increasingly move into selling energy storage, clean energy projects, and grid services to utilities. Tesla CEO Elon Musk said recently that Tesla plans to get into grid services, which use software, smart algorithms, and data to control Tesla batteries to help utilities better manage the power grid. SolarCity already sells these services.

About the Author
By Katie Fehrenbacher
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in

Anu Madgavkar, a partner at the McKinsey Global Institute
AIWorkplace Innovation Summit
McKinsey partner says up to 50% of work hours could be transformed within the next 5 years
By Emma BurleighMay 21, 2026
12 minutes ago
Jeff Bezos
SuccessWealth
Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
By Preston ForeMay 21, 2026
38 minutes ago
Legion Recharge Creatine Review (2026): Expert Tested
HealthDietary Supplements
Legion Recharge Creatine Review (2026): Expert Tested
By Christina SnyderMay 21, 2026
2 hours ago
Photo of MacKenzie Scott
SuccessMacKenzie Scott
MacKenzie Scott gave away more than $7 billion last year—but her secretive style got her snubbed from a top donors list
By Sydney LakeMay 21, 2026
2 hours ago
Current price of Ethereum for May 21, 2026
Personal FinanceEthereum
Current price of Ethereum for May 21, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMay 21, 2026
3 hours ago
Current price of Bitcoin for May 21, 2026
Personal FinanceCryptocurrency
Current price of Bitcoin for May 21, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMay 21, 2026
3 hours ago

Most Popular

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
Workplace Culture
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
By Preston ForeMay 19, 2026
2 days ago
Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'
Success
Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'
By Preston ForeMay 20, 2026
1 day ago
Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics
Future of Work
Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics
By Mike Householder and The Associated PressMay 17, 2026
4 days ago
Dr. Bernice King on why companies that walked back DEI were never truly committed: 'If you retreat that quick…that reveals who you really are'
Workplace Culture
Dr. Bernice King on why companies that walked back DEI were never truly committed: 'If you retreat that quick…that reveals who you really are'
By Preston ForeMay 19, 2026
2 days ago
Pay transparency is exposing a bigger problem: Most companies can't explain why they pay what they pay
Workplace Culture
Pay transparency is exposing a bigger problem: Most companies can't explain why they pay what they pay
By Sydney LakeMay 20, 2026
20 hours ago
Current price of oil as of May 20, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of May 20, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMay 20, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.