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6/13/2024
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Assembly approves Energy Storage Systems Act
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STATE HOUSE — The General Assembly today passed a bill sponsored by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairwoman Dawn Euer and Rep. Arthur Handy to prepare for the development of electric energy storage systems as Rhode Island moves away from carbon emission-producing fuels and toward renewable energy.
The legislation (2024-S 2499A, 2024-H 7811aa) now goes to the governor’s desk for his consideration.
“Rhode Island is a leader in our commitment to ending our reliance on polluting carbon-emitting energy. Keeping that commitment means we need to innovate and we need to do it at speed,” said Chairwoman Euer (D-District 13, Newport, Jamestown). “Moving to renewable electricity means we are going to need the structures — both physical and regulatory — to store energy. This bill sets concrete goals and action plans to build a resilient grid that can accommodate the green energy transition that is happening now. This is just one of many actions we will need to meet our diverse energy goals and ensure that Rhode Island keeps its commitment to a carbon-neutral future.”
Said Representative Handy (D-Dist. 18, Cranston), “We need energy storage to take full advantage of all the clean, renewable energy that will be coming online as we reach toward our climate goals. This legislation is critical to both take advantage of the renewable energy we have to bring online and to build a sustainable grid in the face of severe storms and other effects of climate change.”
The legislation sets a series of benchmarks for energy storage capacity for Rhode Island’s power grid and directs the Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank and the Office of Energy Resources to develop and fund programs to meet these goals.
The bill also requires the Public Utilities Commission (PUC), by Sept. 1, 2024, to adopt a framework for adoption of electric rate tariffs to apply to energy storage systems connected to the electric grid.
At least every three years, the PUC would also be required to conduct a market survey of storage technologies and how they may meet the needs of Rhode Island’s power system. This would ensure that Rhode Island stays current with the latest innovations in the fast-moving field of energy storage systems.
For more information, contact:
Tristan Grau, Publicist
State House Room B20
Providence, RI 02903
401.222.4935
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