Chapter 1: Introduction
| BESS Handbook Index |
|---|
| Home Page |
| 1. Introduction and RACI Tables |
| 2. Planning |
| 3. Procurement |
| 4. Deployment and Integration |
| 5. O&M |
| 6. Decommissioning and EOL |
This handbook serves as a practical reference guide for electric utilities that are navigating significant phases of a battery energy storage project’s life cycle. As utility demand for battery energy storage systems (BESS) expands, utilities can improve safety, manage project and financial risk, and potentially reduce costs by leveraging the knowledge and leading practices gleaned from projects across the industry and described in this report.
Battery energy storage is poised to fundamentally reshape the electric power industry. Led by lithium ion battery technology, energy storage capacity additions to electric power systems are growing rapidly across the globe.
Although many aspects of a battery energy storage project are similar to analogous phases in conventional utility asset planning, deployment, and operation, battery energy storage has unique characteristics that utilities must consider for these projects. Additionally, BESS projects often require involvement and close coordination between utility stakeholder groups who may not have had previous experience in working together; such coordination may not be necessary for other infrastructure projects. The successful outcome of a BESS project relies on early identification and implementation of stakeholder roles and their coordination.
This handbook explores the various processes, roles and responsibilities utility departments have in pursuing a battery energy storage project through its life cycle, beginning from the initial planning phase, through procurement and system deployment to facility operations and maintenance, and finally, to the decommissioning phase. Each chapter provides utilities a roadmap for each phase of a project, providing a beginning-to-end guide for a BESS project.
Preparing the Utility Organization for Energy Storage
The successful execution of a battery energy storage project, as stated above, requires the interplay of many stakeholders within the utility, each contributing their respective expertise. Among the utility groups that contribute to a BESS project are engineering, safety, procurement, operations, finance, legal, information technology, and numerous other groups. Coordinating activities across multiple utility groups can be challenging and disjointed at times, particularly when new technologies are being addressed.
Early in BESS project, cross-utility task forces should be established to tap each internal stakeholder’s expertise. To help identify necessary utility groups and their respective roles, EPRI employs an organization tool as a central feature of this report, a tool known as a Responsibility Assignment (RACI) matrix.
A RACI matrix indicates the level of a stakeholder’s involvement in a specific project activity. Table 1-1 lists the four levels of involvement employed in a RACI matrix. There will be a sole party accountable for any specific task, though this party will rely on multiple utility colleagues to be responsible for discrete tasks. Meanwhile, many other utility departments may need to be consulted or informed about activities that impact their areas of responsibility.
| RACI Role | Definition |
|---|---|
| Responsible (R) | Does the work to complete the project activity |
| Accountable (A) | Delegates and reviews project activity, and ensures activity completion per schedule |
| Consulted (C) | Provides input on work being done and should be consulted prior to project activity |
| Informed (I) | Needs to be kept in the loop on specific project activity, as outcome likely impacts the Informed party’s work. |
Each phase of a battery energy storage project has its own RACI Matrix, which are included in each chapter of this handbook. These RACI matrices define the specific roles for each stakeholder group involved in each phase of an energy storage project.
How to Use this Handbook
The life cycle of an energy storage project has been divided into five phases (see Figure 1-1). The phases used to organize the life cycle of a project are:
- Planning
- Procurement
- Deployment and integration
- Operations and maintenance
- Decommissioning and end-of-life
The phases should not be considered discrete, independent phases conducted by a single group in isolation, but an integrated process that requires front-end work considering the entire life cycle of the BESS, as well as input from all stakeholders throughout the project. For example, during the planning phase, a utility should consider decommissioning plans and costs so that the BESS end-of-life requirements are considered in advance.
Chapter 2 of this report describes the planning stage for a battery energy storage project. Chapter 3 covers the utility procurement of a BESS or its services. Chapter 4 details activities in the deployment and integration phases of a battery energy storage project. Chapter 5 describes the operations and maintenance activities for a BESS. And Chapter 6 provides an overview of the end-of-life, including decommissioning activities, for a battery energy storage project. Each chapter provides a discussion of utility activities that merit focus during that phase, as well as the utility stakeholders that need to be involved. The chapters also include links to relevant resources that describe each project phase in more detail. There is also an annotated list of resources at the end of each chapter. Readers should consult these resources to learn specifics on a particular phase of a BESS project.
Note that this document is intended to be a living handbook that will be updated annually as new project learnings and leading practices are developed. Also, though it builds from the Energy Storage Integration Council (ESIC) Energy Storage Implementation Guide (EPRI, 3002021706), this report is tailored to a utility audience and incorporates a wide range of learnings from the EPRI energy storage research programs.
The following tables serve as both a reference RACI table resource as well as a navigation tool to help users to jump to the most relevant sections of the handbook content.
Chapter 2: Planning of Energy Storage
Chapter 3: Procurement of Energy Storage
| Chapter 3: Procurement - Outline and RACI Matrix | Project Mgmt. | Engineering | Safety | Operations | Legal | IT / Cybersecurity | Land / Environment | Supply Chain | Corporate Mgmt. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Develop the Request for Proposal (RFP) | |||||||||
| Key project information | A | R/C | I | I | I | I | I | R | I |
| Scope of work & responsibilities | A | C | I | C | C | I | I | R | I |
| Technical requirements & specifications | A | R/C | C | C | C | C | C | I | - |
| Deliverables & submittals | A | C | C | C | C | C | C | R | I |
| Develop the Evaluation Method | |||||||||
| Specific category scoring | A/R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | I |
| RFP internal review & release | A/R | C | C | C | C | C | C | A/R | C |
| Bid Process Management | |||||||||
| Post-release communications | A | I | I | I | I | I | I | R | - |
| Bid evaluation | A | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | I |
| Contracting and Award | |||||||||
| Project contracting | A | I | I | I | R | I | I | R | I |
| Additional Resources | |||||||||
Chapter 4: Deployment and Integration of Energy Storage
| Chapter 4: Deployment & Integration - Outline and RACI Matrix | Project Mgmt. | Engineering | Safety | Operations | Legal | IT / OT / Cybersecurity | Land / Environment | Community Affairs | Supply Chain | Corporate Mgmt. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engineering and Permitting | ||||||||||
| Site Engineering | A | R | C | C | I | C | R | - | C | - |
| System Engineering | A | R | C | C | I | C | I | - | C | - |
| Permitting | A | R | I | I | C | I | C | I | C | I |
| Factory Acceptance Test | A | R | C | C | I | C | I | - | R | I |
| Shipping and Receiving | A | C | C | R | I | I | C | I | R | I |
| Installation and Integration | ||||||||||
| Construction Management | A | C | C | R | C | I | C | C | C | - |
| Commissioning | A | R | C | C | I | R | I | I | I | I |
| Interconnection | A | R | C | C | C | C | I | - | I | I |
| Additional Resources | ||||||||||
Chapter 5: Battery Energy Storage Project Operations and Maintenance
| Chapter 5: O&M - Outline and RACI Matrix | Project Mgmt. | Engineering | Safety | Operations | Legal | IT / OT Cybersecurity | Maintenance / Service |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Handoff to Operations | |||||||
| Operational Data Management | A | C | I | R | - | I | I |
| Optimization of BESS | A | C | I | R | - | I | I |
| Operations' Coordination with Maintenance | A | C | C | R | - | C | R |
| Maintenance | A | C/R | C | C/R | - | - | C/R |
| Recommissioning | A | C/R | I | R | - | I | C/R |
| Safety | A | R | R | R | C | C | R |
| Environmental, Safety, and Reliability Reporting | A | C | R | C | C | - | C |
| Additional O&M Resources | |||||||
Chapter 6: Decommissioning and End-of-Life Management of Energy Storage
| Chapter 6: Decommissioning - Outline and RACI Matrix | Project Mgmt. | Engineering | Safety | Operations | Legal | IT / OT Cybersecurity | Land / Environment | Corporate Sustainability | Site Manager |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plan for Decommissioning | |||||||||
| Determine roles and scope for decommissioning | A/R | C | C | C | I | I | I | I | R/C |
| Develop decommissioning plan | A | R | C | C | I | I | C | C | R/C |
| Determine material value and cost of decommissioning at EOL | A/R | R/C | I | I | I | I | C | C | C |
| Maintain documentation for decommissioning | A/R | C | C | C | C | I | I | I | A/R |
| Onsite preparations | A | C | C | C | C | I | I | I | R |
| Disconnect and Decommission | |||||||||
| Determine end of life condition has been met | A | C | C | R | I | I | C | C | R |
| Execute decommissioning plan | A | C | C | I | I | I | I | I | R |
| Transport to End Destination | |||||||||
| Package for transport | A | C | C | I | I | I | I | I | R |
| Transportation to next destination | A/R | I | I | I | C/I | I | C/I | I | I |
| Additional Resources | |||||||||