Battery storage financials remain in question as lawmakers consider energy omnibus

By Jim Talamonti | The Center Square
The Center Square

(The Center Square) – State lawmakers are expected to include battery storage as part of an energy omnibus bill at the Illinois Capitol next week, but questions remain over who will pay for it.

Democratic state Rep. Amy “Murri” Briel, D-Ottawa, said she feels like an energy omnibus, currently known as the Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act (CRGA), will be a huge asset to the state.

“Not only will it provide more stable energy and better grid capacity, but it’s going to create jobs. It’s going to create companies being able to land here with the quantum computing and the expansion that they’ve done. I’m very excited about that,” Briel told The Center Square.

Briel said battery storage makes sense for Illinois.

“We need that in order to keep the grid stable, but I know that there’s work going on still about navigating how that ends up being financed,” Briel added.

Briel said her energy bill doubled over the last two months and she does not want more price raises for consumers.

Earlier this month, state Sen. Willie Preston, D-Chicago, told The Center Square that he was a “hard no” on the energy omnibus if it included another line item on consumers’ utility bills, saying it “could just crush working-class people.”

State Sen. Li Arellano, R-Dixon, noted that Preston offered a way to keep utility customers from having to pick up the tab for battery storage.

“So in the case of Sen. Preston, I know he’s been talking about some language on the energy bill that would have developers pay for their own battery storage if they want to develop that out instead of putting it on consumers,” Arellano told The Center Square.

Arellano said he hopes lawmakers act to relieve the pressures causing high energy costs.

“For example, natural gas is something we should be building, especially since Illinois has more renewable natural gas that they’ve invested in. That’s one example where we instantly relieve the pressure and the need for higher energy bills,” Arellano said.

Arellano said Illinois should have been building nuclear all along and also suggested that lawmakers rethink clean coal technologies.

Numerous groups have come out in favor of CRGA, including the Citizens Utility Board, the Illinois Power Agency and solar energy companies.

Opponents include the American Petroleum Institute in Illinois and the Illinois Industrial Energy Consumers, which issued a statement saying it would be in the best interest of the public to delay a vote and hold public meetings.