WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Electricity (OE) today announced a Request for Information (RFI)soliciting feedback on a proposed Blue Sky Training Program to train first responders, law enforcement agencies, local communities, utilities, authorities having jurisdictions, and others on how to respond to unanticipated failures of energy storage systems (ESS). This proposed program will help ensure community readiness when including energy storage as a source of back up generation to renewable energy resources.

As storage technologies like advanced batteries continue to be widely deployed, communities must be “storage ready.”  In addition, stakeholders must be consulted to ensure a new or existing ESS will operate safely and reliably. In U.S. localities, uncertainty over proper response procedures to security threats and unanticipated ESS failures can delay or even prevent deployment.

“Our critical first responders and utilities can benefit from clarity on the unique operational aspects of energy storage facilities. As more communities across our nation include renewable energy and energy storage into their generation mix, it’s important that community members know how to manage any complexities that arise with these technologies,” said Gene Rodrigues, Assistant Secretary for Electricity. “Energy storage bolsters system reliability and enables every American to benefit from abundant and affordable clean energy. The Office of Electricity continues to advance new technologies while preparing the community for the next-generation energy storage technologies to benefit the American people.”

Anticipated major objectives and outcomes include, but are not limited, to:

1. Provide resources to include community stakeholders who may traditionally not be involved in decision-making related to ESS deployment, operation, and safety planning.

2. Development of emergency response plans and trainings for participating community stakeholders at an ESS site.

3. Development of a safety validation report that describes site-wide criteria to verify that the safety measures/functions are incorporated into the ESS site.

We invite stakeholders to provide feedback on these categories:

• Program objectives

• Applicants and partners

• Project deliverables and results

Submit responses to this RFI (DE-FOA-0003282) to RFI-3282@NETL.DOE.GOV

by 5 p.m., (ET) on June 3, 2024. This RFI is not a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA); therefore, DOE is not accepting funding applications at this time.

See more about OE’s work on energy storage here.

Learn more about OE.