Jan. 20—OLIVIA

— A San Francisco, California-based renewable energy company is eyeing a site in

Renville County

for what would be Minnesota’s largest battery energy storage system.

Mission Clean Energy intends to build a utility-scale, 200-megawatt battery storage system in Camp Township, near the community of Franklin in the county’s southeast corner. The proposed location would allow the storage site to connect to Great River Energy Cooperative’s Cedar Mountain substation on a high voltage transmission line.

The battery storage system would take energy from the transmission grid and discharge it back onto the grid in times of need. It would prevent blackouts and improve the resiliency of the transmission grid, Carly Grossman, development manager with Mission Clean Energy, told the

Renville County Board of Commissioners

at their meeting on Jan. 16.

Renville County would receive the benefits of property taxes from the project — as well as the economic activity associated with its construction.

The project is still in the very early stages. Mission Clean Energy is hoping it can connect to the grid in 2028, but has yet start to the process of obtaining authorization from the Midwest Independent System Operators (MISO). The process will require engineering studies and a minimum of a one-year time frame, according to Grossman.

It also will be seeking a permit from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission for the project. It will be initiating that process this year as well, according to Ethan Frazier, permitting manager with Mission Clean Energy.

Mission Clean Energy will build the system on a 20-acre property, but only about eight acres of the site will hold the batteries. The lithium ion batteries will be connected and housed in about 200 different containers, according to Audrey Copeland, development manager with the company. The site will be fenced. Water-based cooling and water-based fire suppression systems will be part of the project.

Commissioners expressed concerns about the project’s possible impact and whether it posed a fire danger. Board chair Randy Kramer said online research into large battery storage systems brought up information on risks associated with lithium batteries starting fires or exploding.

Along with a built-in fire suppression system, Frazier said the company would place the units far enough apart to reduce the potential for a fire to spread.

Scott Refsland, environmental services director for Renville County, said the size of the project makes it appropriate for the state PUC to be responsible for its permitting.

The commissioners discussed whether the county should consider a moratorium to allow it to study the impact of the project. Refsland said the county’s land use attorney said a moratorium could not delay and would not affect the permitting process since it is the state’s responsibility.