500 MW compressed air energy storage project in California secures offtaker

• Central Coast Community Energy (3CE) in California has inked a 25-year power purchase agreement with Hydrostor valued at almost $1 billion.
• The deal involves purchasing 200 MW/1600 MWh of energy storage from Hydrostor’s planned 500 MW compressed air energy storage system.
• Hydrostor’s technology enables cost-effective storage of up to eight hours of energy without using fuels, occupying a smaller footprint compared to pumped hydro facilities.
• This project, known as Willow Rock, aims to aid 3CE in achieving its goal of providing 100% clean and renewable electricity to its 447,000 customers by 2030.
• The initiative will charge using surplus renewable energy and alleviate the need for new peak-demand generating facilities and costly transmission lines.
• Hydrostor anticipates the project to employ up to 40 full-time operators with no performance degradation over its 50-plus year lifespan.
• Discussions for the remaining 300 MW of the project’s capacity are ongoing. 

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