Antora, POET Start 5GWh Thermal Battery in South Dakota

Why this is here: The project deployed more than 200 of Antora’s thermal batteries, which store electricity as heat in insulated carbon blocks.

Antora Energy and POET have commissioned a 5 gigawatt-hour thermal energy storage system at POET’s bioprocessing facility in Big Stone City, South Dakota. Construction began less than a year ago, and the system is already delivering energy.

The project uses over 200 thermal batteries made in Antora’s San Jose, California facility. These batteries store inexpensive electricity as heat within solid-carbon blocks. POET will use this continuous heat supply for bioethanol production, and South Dakota farmers may gain access to new markets.

Over 300 jobs were supported during the installation and manufacturing phases, split between California and South Dakota. The system charges during periods of excess local energy, avoiding cost increases for other customers. However, the long-term performance and scalability of this thermal storage approach remain to be seen.

Antora and POET expect full operations later this year and will continue to refine the technology.