Elon Musk’s 100-megawatt battery is not just for storage. Functionally speaking, the ‘Hornsdale Power Reserve’ as it’s called is actually two batteries in one! ABC Money reports 70 megawatts are on contract to the South Australia government for grid stability and security. Secondly, the other 30 of Tesla’s 100 are for something distinctly different.
The Functions of the Other 30 Megawatts
In the first instance, the 30 megawatts will smooth the power output of the adjacent Hornsdale Wind Farm. Thus, this will remain consistent, even though the wind may ebb and flow. However secondly, Tesla’s 100 megawatts are sufficiently flexible to do even more. Since the 30 attached to the wind farm are also able to participate in the ‘frequency control ancillary service’ market.
The giant South Australia battery is so nimble it can go from zero to 30 megawatts in an official 4 seconds. In reality, it probably does this in milliseconds but the industry data counts in four-second intervals. Hence, this power could support an emergency shutdown without tripping units. This happened in the 2016 blackout disaster because a storm took out so many power lines.
How the Frequency Control Ancillary Market Works
Participants must have capacity to increase or decrease outputs in six second, sixty second, and 5-minute intervals. The key 30 megawatts in Tesla’s 100 meg battery can make all these adjustments in style. Grid frequency control has historically been the remit of large synchronous coal and nuclear power plants. Because these carry a measure of spinning reserve for this purpose.
As these lumbering giants begin to depart the grid in favor of renewables, we require a new, innovative solution. The Australian government is investigating a ‘fast frequency response’ alternative. This might do the job in tens to hundreds of milliseconds. And be able to keep the grid stable long enough for technicians to regain control.
Perhaps this is the real purpose of Tesla’s 100 megawatt battery. Could this be the long-term goal behind Elon Musk’s giga factories? How intriguing. How very intriguing indeed.
Related
Understanding Capacity Factor of Wind Farms
Grid Frequency and How Batteries Help
Preview Image: Battery at Hornsdale Wind Farm (Taken from Video Share Link)
Video Share Link: Hornsdale Wind Farm Battery
