Texas' largest battery energy storage system online

GRANBURY (CBSDFW.COM) -  A collection of batteries holding enough energy to power 130,000 homes for up to an hour, is now online and connected to the Texas power grid from its location near Granbury.

Vistra cut the ribbon the 260 MW DeCordova Energy Storage Facility Monday, the largest facility of its type in the state.

The battery modules, inside rows of metal containers, can store energy at night when the wind is blowing but there is low demand for the renewable resource. Then they can push the power onto the grid instantly in times of high demand, helping to stabilize power availability until demand falls or other generating resources come online.

The installation is part of a growing supply of battery storage sites in Texas, now up to more than 2,000 MW according to ERCOT's summer resource forecast.

Vistra believes its facility may also now be the first hybrid power generating site in the country. The batteries were installed next to four quick-start natural gas generators. The company is now also storing diesel fuel at the site so generators could still operate even if gas is unavailable.

"Consumers need real solutions, available today, not just in the future and that's what I believe we're demonstrating with this site," Vistra president Jim Burke said during a ribbon cutting ceremony at the facility Monday.