OPEN CALL

Safer Energy Storage for Dense, Urban Environments

Testing and validating safer energy storage technology, which conforms to FDNY and NYC Department of Buildings regulations, is critical for creating the right technology mix to scale distributed energy resources in NYC. Potential use cases may include: outdoor storage, indoor storage for a building, or integration with rooftop solar energy systems.

Pilots in this focus area will support real-world power needs and generate valuable case studies that help to navigate NYC’s current regulatory approval framework, as is required for scaling energy storage in NYC.

Showcase Community Impacts of Energy Storage

Simulating the impacts of behind-the-meter energy storage deployment within a local community will generate data that showcases energy storage projects as safe, technically and financially feasible, and delivering clear benefits to the host community—ultimately advancing the development of these projects. Use cases include: quantifying backup power potential, modeling the energy cost savings,  revenue generation, environmental impacts of systems, and additional benefits to the local economy. 

Pilots in this focus area will aim to model the impacts of an energy storage deployment that centers on the priorities of local communities to provide compelling insights and learnings, and guide a just transition to a sustainable energy future.

Demonstrate Novel, Emerging Energy Storage Solutions

Demonstrating energy storage solutions in locations in NYC that fall outside of FDNY and Department of Buildings jurisdiction creates an opportunity to test novel, emerging energy storage technologies in a less restrictive environment. Potential use cases should inform new approaches for urban energy storage and may include: indoor deployments, resiliency demonstrations, tests of hyper-safe technologies, thermal, mechanical, or kinetic energy storage, alternate battery chemistries, long-duration storage, and other emerging technologies. 

Pilots will include KPIs around technical feasibility, cost analysis, ease of installation, and interconnection with the grid. Additionally, opportunities to leverage pilot sites to raise public awareness about the benefits of energy storage systems will help to set the stage for energy innovation at scale in NYC.

Integrate Electric Vehicles (EVs) and Energy Storage Assets

Exploring the interaction between energy storage, EVs, buildings, and generation assets in NYC can help unlock the full potential of EVs as part of an integrated energy future. Potential use cases may include: validating EVs as back-up energy sources at scale, testing the benefits of energy-storage-enabled EV charging infrastructure, modulating EV charging with intermittent renewable power output, or testing the potential of energy storage to optimize the system of EVs, DERs, and generation.

Pilots in this focus area will aim to showcase how the energy storage capacity of EV batteries can be leveraged as Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) or how integrating energy storage with EV charging infrastructure can lessen grid strain during peak demand.