A Comparison of Policies on the Participation of Storage in U.S. Frequency Regulation Markets

TL;DR

This paper compares various U.S. policies on energy storage participation in frequency regulation markets, analyzing how each policy impacts potential revenues and operational constraints of storage systems.

Contribution

It provides a comparative analysis of different U.S. policies affecting energy storage in frequency regulation, highlighting their implications for revenue and operational feasibility.

Findings

Different policies significantly influence storage revenue potential.

Fast ramping benefits are exploited differently across policies.

Policy design impacts storage system viability in regulation markets.

Abstract

Because energy storage systems have better ramping characteristics than traditional generators, their participation in frequency regulation should facilitate the balancing of load and generation. However, they cannot sustain their output indefinitely. System operators have therefore implemented new frequency regulation policies to take advantage of the fast ramps that energy storage systems can deliver while alleviating the problems associated with their limited energy capacity. This paper contrasts several U.S. policies that directly affect the participation of energy storage systems in frequency regulation and compares the revenues that the owners of such systems might achieve under each policy.