Launching the UMN Center for Renewable Energy Storage Technology

Driving Innovation in Energy Storage

To buffer the intermittency of wind and solar power generation, it is broadly understood that the future grid will require integration of energy storage technologies. Renewable resources are already meeting large amounts of our energy needs. Energy storage will unlock the potential of integrating even more clean energy onto the grid, which includes not only adding kilowatt-hours, but also ancillary services that help to stabilize the grid.

In order to do this, the University of Minnesota Morris and West Central Outreach Center created the Center for Renewable Energy Storage Technology. This center formalizes and coordinates multi-year research projects, high-profile partnerships with global partners, educational activities with farmers and rural communities, and development efforts with multi-national companies.

Outcomes

• Launched CREST and hosted numerous tours which generated significant traffic to Morris to learn about energy storage implementation and policy planning
• Developed and launched the CREST website
• Created relationships with thermal battery companies
• Sustained many projects – including a non-lithium battery project, green ammonia project and a lithium ferrous phosphate project – to show how Minnesota can store and use energy in different forms to reach carbon-free electricity

This work was featured in a PBS Prairie Sportsman episode and a Wall Street Journal article.