With a flip of a switch, GridStor’s Goleta energy storage facility is ready to provide 60 mega-watts or 160 mega-watt hours of electricity, capable of powering over 30,000 households.
GridStor installed 44 emission-free containerized Tesla batteries at the 25,000-square foot facility on Cortona Drive.
The facility is now operational after starting construction in June of this year. It also marks GridStor’s first operational project, just 18 months after the company’s launch.
The new Goleta facility was described as the largest power resource in Santa Barbara County.
According to GridStor CEO Chris Taylor, the facility will be able to harness clean energy from wind and solar, store the energy, and then release it back to the grid when large amounts of power are needed.
“We increased our aspirations to become a leading platform for energy-storage projects in North America, because we believe that access to clean energy can allow us to have both growth and prosperity while also addressing the climate crisis,” Taylor said on Friday at an unveiling of the new facility.
The facility will be able to support the 900 mega-watts of wind and solar power that operate through the region, as well as the further build out of the planned 7,500 mega-watts of renewable energy of the next decade.
At Friday’s unveiling, city and county officials said the new facility is another step to wean off reliance on fossil fuels, as well as make areas of the county that are vulnerable to fire, mudslides and earthquakes more resilient.
“This facility will improve resilience through the heat waves and winter storms in addition to helping meet the daily needs of our city’s growing population,” Kyle Richards, Goleta mayor pro tem, said on Friday.
Third District county Supervisor Joan Hartman said that the facility will be able to provide reliable energy and be part of the growing virtual power plant evolving on the South Coast.
Taylor said this is the beginning of a larger transition across the state to rely on clean energy and not fossil fuels.
“Battery storage has been the missing link to allow us to decouple our economic growth from the use of carbon-based fuels,” Taylor said.
Taylor shared that GridStor plans to add 2,500 mega-watts hours of battery resources in Southern California, which will help power 500,000 households and employ 550 workers during construction.
