Indiana utility giant NIPSCO found, after a detailed analysis, that the key to reducing customers’ bills, while addressing recent financial losses at the hands of coal, will come from combining storage with wind and solar over the next few years.
Key Takeaways:
- An aggressive plan came out in the NIPSCO study: remove 78% coal by 2023 and then another 22% by 2028
- Wind, Solar and Storage will be the game plan as utilities “now recognize that building storage creates an asset of real versatility”
- For NIPSCO, a historically pro-coal company, this plan shocked industry experts
Path to 100% Perspective:
Putting aside the politics of coal and its inflexibility, the fact is that as storage costs have declined the concept and use of storage has moved from serving markets at the margin to becoming front-and-center as part of the mainstream mix. As Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NISPCO) learned, they must think of storage as a necessary element to be alongside solar, and the article highlights other utilities following suit. Check out what we’re reading on PV Magazine USA called “Bulking Up: Storage Heads for Center Stage.”