[12] At a windy mountain pass on the edge of the Mojave Desert, North America’s most potent collection of batteries used for storing unused power is humming its way toward an electricity revolution.

[25] One key lesson learned is the importance of subscale testing by the electric utility prior to full system deployment so that the safety and operational controls and features could be fully evaluated.

[32] The deployment of TSP has been part of the key foundation in developing energy storage in California[33] and for increasing grid reliability overall.

The BESS far exceeded its original two-year demonstration; it's appropriate to decommission now.One of the major benefits of the TSP system is the wide range of studies and analyses performed by multiple organizations to address various aspects of the energy market.

Operational information has been used as part of developing incentives for distributed energy storage for California, New York, Hawaii, and several other states.

[49] The findings from this study include: In a separate analysis, the University of California, Riverside used real market data from TSP to develop an optimal supply and demand bidding, scheduling, and deployment design framework based on the day-ahead and real-time market prices, location, size, efficiency, lifetime, and charge and discharge rates.

[51] The topic of used and second-use batteries is also examined and analysis shows that by using one of the proposed bidding methods, TSP could still be profitable even after losing half of its energy capacity.

[51] Based on the studies described above, the University of California, Riverside performed an additional analysis for the scenarios where battery systems are investor-owned and independently operated and participating in existing markets.

[52] The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) published a collection of technical papers analyzing energy storage, including a review of TSP.

[53] The Edison Electric Institute (EEI), which represents all investor-owned utilities in the United States, published a set of case studies and described how TSP has capabilities to provide nearly instantaneous maximum capacity for renewables ramping, which minimizes needs for traditional backup generators.

[54] The European Commission performs an ongoing analysis of energy storage systems, including TSP, and has global collaborations with technical experts to exchange and to learn about operating details, challenges, and best practices.

[55] Some of the challenges resolved for TSP included the programming logic, safety limits, and data aggregation, as well as the use of consistent paths for component communications.

[56] The article mentions that TSP provided support for the rapid expansion of renewable energy, as well as being a rare utility-scale battery with a 4-hour duration during the 2014 timeframe when it was commissioned.

[56] It seems an unlikely setting for a technology revolution: a wind-swept patch of Mojave Desert, squeezed in beside railroad tracks and a giant cement plant.

But there it is, on the grounds of Southern California Edison’s Monolith substation near Tehachapi, Calif.: the largest battery for storing electricity in North America.

[1] An official ribbon-cutting ceremony, site tour, and presentation of a certificate of recognition from the California State Senate were held on September 24, 2014.

[3][57][58] The ceremony speakers included Doug Kim (Director of Advanced Technology, Southern California Edison), Zack Scrivner (Supervisor, Kern County Board of Supervisors), Dr. Imre Gyuk (Energy Storage Program Manager, United States Department of Energy), Dr. Seokhwan Kwak (Vice President of Marketing, LG Chem), and Romeo Agbalog (Office of State Senator, Jean Fuller – 18th District).

[67] Host and science writer David Pogue described how lithium-ion batteries are being installed on the grid and Doug Kim of SCE explained the use of TSP for smoothing, firming, and time shifting of wind power.

[73]  TSP advanced technology by showing the abilities of lithium-ion battery storage systems to ramp up nearly instantaneously to maximum power capacity.

[73] As a result, one of the important impacts of TSP is that it provided practical experience in operations and reliability under real-word conditions as one of the largest energy storage systems located on a high-traffic grid.

[73]   Additional impacts included providing increased definition and development of the process for interconnecting energy storage systems to the grid.