A provider of geothermal energy partners with Alevo to use its GridBank and Alevo Analytics technology for the Texas energy market.
Alevo Group, an energy storage provider, says it has signed an agreement with Ormat Technologies, Inc. to jointly build, own and operate the Rabbit Hill Energy Storage Project, a 10 MW energy storage project in Georgetown, Texas.
The project, one of several major commercial deployments Alevo has planned for 2016, will be located at the Rabbit Hill substation which is owned and operated by Georgetown Utility Systems and the city of Georgetown. The utility is at the forefront of renewable energy in Texas, and in 2015 became both the first municipally-owned utility in Texas and one of the first nationally to procure 100% of its energy from renewable sources. Energy storage will play an increasingly important role in Georgetown Utility Systems’ energy supply mix.

The project will consist of three Alevo GridBank energy storage systems (like that pictured) and six Parker-Hannifin 890-GTB Power Conversion Systems (not shown).
Ormat will own and fund most of the Rabbit Hill Energy Storage Project which will provide Georgetown Utility Systems with fast response regulation services (FFRS) as an open market participant to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), an independent system operator that manages the flow of electric power to Texas customers. As the first commercial project built in ERCOT to provide FRRS, the project is an important milestone in the evolution of the Texas market, which has more wind turbines that any other state and a rapidly expanding base of installed solar energy projects.
“Georgetown has been evaluating energy storage benefits for several years,” says Jim Briggs, general manager for utilities for the City of Georgetown. “This project gives us the opportunity to evaluate the benefits and complexities of such a permanent deployment in the future. The use of energy storage in concert with the generation of energy by renewable sources seems to make basic economic sense.”
The project will consist of three Alevo GridBank energy storage systems and six Parker-Hannifin 890-GTB Power Conversion Systems (PCS). Under the terms of the agreements, Ormat will provide construction services and balance of plant equipment. Alevo will provide ongoing management and Operations and Maintenance services for the duration of the project.
“Entering the energy storage market is a key component of our long term growth plan, helping us to further diversify revenues and advancing our goals of transitioning from a geothermal company to a recognized leader in the renewable energy industry,” commented Isaac Angel, Chief Executive Officer, Ormat. “We see the energy storage market as a meaningful growth driver for Ormat and for the renewable energy industry and we continue to work on similar and other initiatives to support value for our shareholders.”
Alevo, a provider of energy storage, is redefining energy as a developer, manufacturer and provider of grid-scale energy storage solutions featuring GridBank and Alevo Analytics. GridBank Lithium-Ion batteries feature a proprietary inorganic electrolyte (Alevolyte), which is non-flammable and offers extreme long life and stability. The company’s vertically engineered turnkey energy storage solution can be placed anywhere on the electricity supply chain, to reduce energy waste, lower greenhouse gases and other emissions, create efficiencies and lower costs. Founded in 2009, Alevo is headquartered in Switzerland with GridBank manufacturing in the US.
With over five decades of experience, Ormat Technologies, Inc. is a leading geothermal company and the only vertically integrated company engaged in geothermal and recovered energy generation (REG), with the objective of becoming a leading global provider of renewable energy. The company owns, operates, designs, manufactures and sells geothermal and REG power plants primarily based on the Ormat Energy Converter – a power generation unit that converts low, medium, and high-temperature heat into electricity. With 72 U.S. patents, Ormat’s power solutions have been refined and perfected under the most grueling environmental conditions. Ormat has 450 employees in the United States and over 600 overseas. Ormat’s flexible, modular solutions for geothermal power and REG are ideal for the vast range of resource characteristics. The company has engineered, manufactured and constructed power plants, which it currently owns or has installed to utilities and developers worldwide, totaling over 2,000 MW of gross capacity. Ormat’s current 697 MW generating portfolio is spread globally in the U.S., Guatemala and Kenya.
Filed Under: Energy storage, News