Do not discount advances in BESS

Editor, OBSERVER:

In regard to the piece with the headline “BESS catastrophe can be prevented” that was published last month in the OBSERVER, I do have some concerns.

First, the author writes about lithium ion BESS projects and their myriad dangers. Grid scale Li- ion BESS projects began operating about 15 to 20 years ago. In searching for Li-ion BESS failures in general, a study, “Safety Aspects of Stationary Battery Energy Storage Systems,” tracked stationary BESS failures (fires, explosions, etc.). The report mentioned about 10 BESS failure events globally per year on average since 2018.

In 2023, around fifteen incidents were recorded. It also needs to be recognized that although deployments of Li-ion BESS have grown rapidly (especially large grid-scale systems), the number of failure/fire events has not increased proportionally. In many places the rate (failures per unit capacity installed) is declining or stable.

The author failed to make any mention of advancements in BESS battery chemistries. While Li-ion dominates for four-hour storage today, flow batteries, sodium-based, zinc-based, and liquid metal chemistries are the leading non-lithium options actively being installed or piloted for grid-scale BESS — especially where long duration — greater than four to six hours, safety, or cost advantages are critical.

In fact, if long life (decades), deep discharge, and high safety are priorities, flow batteries (especially vanadium) and zinc-based options are strong contenders.

Finally, the author seems to favor a countywide ban on BESS projects, painting all BESS systems with a wide brush of personal animosity and questionable research biases. Let’s say a company comes to our county and proposes a BESS and solar system on land that is not close to any population centers, residential, commercial, whatever. The closest example I know is the Ellery landfill. There is ample space to install a BESS and solar system to support a commercial project such as a recycling or renewable gas operation or even a right-sized data center.

Such a project could easily be structured to offer significant financial rewards on a county-wide basis while making sure of safety and environmental concerns in the contract’s language and stipulations.

So, I do thank the author for bringing up the subject of BESS projects and I also caution the author to perhaps tone down the personal assertions of impending catastrophe.

I would also encourage readers to find multiple sources of information concerning this or any controversial topic. Education through questioning and understanding is essential for a person, a county, and a society.

BOB REUTHER,

White Oak Power,

Lily Dale