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Aurora Study Finds 4–5 GW of Storage Could Slash Southwest Power Pool Costs by $7 Billion

High queue withdrawals coupled with slow permitting could block the 4–5 gigawatts of storage needed to tame evening price spikes

A new study said that utility-scale battery storage could reduce energy costs by up to 80% during peak demand in Kansas's power grid.

Overview

  • Aurora finds that 5 GW of storage could reduce evening peak rates by about 87%, cutting prices from roughly $1,141/MWh to $153/MWh.
  • The analysis projects over 4 GW of batteries coming online by 2030 and around 5 GW by 2035 based on current interconnection queues.
  • SPP has just 1 GW of existing storage despite more than 25 GW requesting interconnection, though nearly 58% of projects have historically withdrawn.
  • Without added storage, the report warns peak wholesale prices could spike by nearly $988/MWh by 2035, intensifying grid volatility.
  • Utilities including Evergy are moving ahead with storage plans such as the Parsons facility slated for 2028, even as regulatory hurdles persist.