AES Indiana, a subsidiary of AES Corporation, is celebrating Earth Day with two generation project updates.
The utility announced the full operations of the Pike County Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) and approval by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) to acquire and construct a project called Crossvine, a solar plus battery storage project located in Dubois County.
“These announcements represent the latest milestones in our more than a decade-long journey toward transitioning to a more balanced energy portfolio that adds flexibility to the grid while keeping costs affordable for our customers,” said Brandi Davis-Handy, President of AES Indiana. “As the needs of our customers and communities grow, so will the ways we reliably power their needs today and well into the future.”
Pike County BESS
The Pike County BESS is “one of the largest” BESS projects within the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) footprint, AES Indiana said. This project is part of approximately $1.1 billion in investments in Pike County from 2024 to 2026, which includes repowering Petersburg Generating Station Units 3 and 4 and adding two solar and battery storage projects announced last year.
Pike County BESS can store and deliver 200 MW of electricity for up to four hours, and has the capacity to power more than 38,000 homes during peak demand periods.
Crossvine Project
Crossvine, which AES Indiana will purchase from Lightsource bp, is anticipated to bring 85 MW of solar capacity and 85 MW / 4 hours of battery power capacity to AES Indiana’s generation portfolio, once complete in mid-2027. The project is estimated to have the capacity to power approximately 14,500 homes.
The Crossvine project is meant to help to fulfill a generation need identified as part of AES Indiana’s 2022 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). Crossvine will join AES Indiana’s portfolio of renewable projects that also includes Hoosier Wind in Benton County and Hardy Hills Solar in Clinton County. Altogether, Hoosier Wind, Hardy Hills and Crossvine are projected to generate approximately 760,000 MWh annually from solar generation, enough to power the equivalent of 63,000 homes when Crossvine is operational by mid-2027.
