Fears of massive battery fires spark local opposition to energy storage projects

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By  MICHAEL HILL. Associated Press (AP). 

Excerpt: ...Battery energy storage systems that suck up cheap power during periods of low demand, then discharge it at a profit during periods of high demand, are considered critical with the rise of intermittent energy sources such as wind and solar. ...the systems can make grids more reliable and have been credited with reducing blackouts. ...China and the United States lead the world in rapidly adding battery storage energy systems. ...In the U.S., California and Texas have been leaders in battery storage. ...While the Trump administration has been unsupportive or even hostile to renewable energy, key tax credits for energy storage projects were maintained in the recently approved federal budget.... Developers added 4,908 megawatts of battery storage capacity in the second quarter of 2025, with Arizona, California and Texas accounting for about three-quarters of that new capacity, according to a report from American Clean Power Association.... That’s enough to power nearly 1.7 million households. New York has an ambitious goal to add 6,000 megawatts of energy storage by 2030, half of it large-scale systems. ...Opposition to the storage systems usually focuses on the possibility of thermal runaway, a chain reaction of uncontrolled heating that can lead to fire or an explosion. ...Ofodike Ezekoye, ...professor of mechanical engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, notes that failures are relatively infrequent.... “This is a relatively immature technology that is maturing quickly..." .... 

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