The battery system will be another backup source of energy, but it will be available year-round, he said. Its power can be put into the grid more quickly and efficiently than power from a gas-fired turbine. “It’s almost instantaneous,” Janorschke said. It can be recharged when the utility is producing power at its most efficient levels. “It will save significant dollars in fuel every year,” he said. “As gas prices escalate those savings will keep going up.”
The Homer Electric system on the Kenai Peninsula is also expected to cut emissions from natural gas-fired plants and save the utility money.