II 

Calendar No. 255 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1602 

[Report No. 116–135] 

To amend the United States Energy Storage Competitiveness Act of 2007 

to establish a research, development, and demonstration program for 

grid-scale energy storage systems, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 22, 2019 

Ms. COLLINS (for herself, Mr. HEINRICH, Ms. SMITH, Mr. GARDNER, Mr. 

COONS, Ms. MCSALLY, Mr. KING, Mr. CRAPO, Ms. STABENOW, Ms. 

HIRONO, Mr. MANCHIN, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Ms. HASSAN, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. REED, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, Mr. WYDEN, Ms. DUCKWORTH, 

and Ms. MURKOWSKI) introduced the following bill; which was read twice 

and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

OCTOBER 22, 2019 

Reported by Ms. MURKOWSKI, with an amendment and an amendment to the 

title 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To amend the United States Energy Storage Competitiveness 

Act of 2007 to establish a research, development, and 

demonstration program for grid-scale energy storage systems, and for other purposes. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Better Energy Storage 

5 Technology Act’’ or the ‘‘BEST Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. GRID-SCALE ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEM RESEARCH, 

7 DEVELOPMENT, AND DEMONSTRATION PRO8 GRAM. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The United States Energy Stor10 age Competitiveness Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17231) is 

11 amended— 

12 (1) by redesignating subsections (l) through (p) 

13 as subsections (m) through (q), respectively; and 

14 (2) by inserting after subsection (k) the fol15 lowing: 

16 ‘‘(l) GRID-SCALE ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEM RE17 SEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, AND DEMONSTRATION PRO18 GRAM.— 

19 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

20 ‘‘(A) ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEM.—The 

21 term ‘energy storage system’ means a system, 

22 equipment, facility, or technology that— 

23 ‘‘(i) is capable of absorbing energy, 

24 storing that energy for a period of time, 

25 and dispatching the stored energy; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii)(I) uses a mechanical, electrical, 

2 chemical, electrochemical, or thermal proc3 ess to store energy that— 

4 ‘‘(aa) was generated at an earlier 

5 time for use at a later time; or 

6 ‘‘(bb) was generated from a me7 chanical process, and would otherwise 

8 be wasted, for delivery at a later time; 

9 or 

10 ‘‘(II) stores thermal energy for direct 

11 use for heating or cooling at a later time 

12 in a manner that avoids the need to use 

13 electricity at that later time, in the same 

14 manner as the storage and use offered by 

15 a grid-enabled water heater. 

16 ‘‘(B) PROGRAM.—The term ‘program’ 

17 means the research, development, and dem18 onstration program established under para19 graph (2)(A). 

20 ‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

22 days after the date of enactment of the BEST 

23 Act, the Secretary shall establish within the Of24 fice of Electricity of the Department of Energy 

25 a research, development, and demonstration 


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1 program of grid-scale energy storage systems, 

2 in accordance with this subsection. 

3 ‘‘(B) GOALS, PRIORITIES, COST TAR4 GETS.—The Secretary shall develop goals, pri5 orities, and cost targets for the program. 

6 ‘‘(3) STRATEGIC PLAN.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

8 days after the date of enactment of the BEST 

9 Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Com10 mittee on Energy and Natural Resources of the 

11 Senate and the Committee on Science, Space, 

12 and Technology of the House of Representa13 tives a 10-year strategic plan for the program. 

14 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—The strategic plan sub15 mitted under subparagraph (A) shall— 

16 ‘‘(i) identify Department of Energy 

17 programs that— 

18 ‘‘(I) support the research and de19 velopment activities described in para20 graph (4) and the demonstration 

21 projects under paragraph (6); and 

22 ‘‘(II)(aa) do not support the ac23 tivities or projects described in sub24 clause (I); but 


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1 ‘‘(bb) are important to the devel2 opment of grid-scale energy storage 

3 systems and the mission of the Office 

4 of Electricity of the Department of 

5 Energy, as determined by the Sec6 retary; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) include expected timelines for— 

8 ‘‘(I) the accomplishment of rel9 evant objectives under current pro10 grams of the Department of Energy 

11 relating to grid-scale energy storage 

12 systems; and 

13 ‘‘(II) the commencement of any 

14 new initiatives within the Department 

15 of Energy relating to grid-scale energy 

16 storage systems to accomplish those 

17 objectives. 

18 ‘‘(C) UPDATES TO PLAN.—Not less fre19 quently than once every 2 years, the Secretary 

20 shall submit to the Committee on Energy and 

21 Natural Resources of the Senate and the Com22 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology of 

23 the House of Representatives an updated 10- 

24 year strategic plan, which shall identify, and 

25 provide a justification for, any major deviation 


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1 from a previous strategic plan submitted under 

2 this paragraph. 

3 ‘‘(4) RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.—In car4 rying out the program, the Secretary shall focus re5 search and development activities on developing cost6 effective energy storage systems that— 

7 ‘‘(A)(i) to balance day-scale needs, are ca8 pable of highly flexible power output for not 

9 less than 6 hours; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) have a lifetime of— 

11 ‘‘(I) not less than 8,000 cycles of dis12 charge at full output; and 

13 ‘‘(II) 20 years of operation; 

14 ‘‘(B)(i) can provide power to the electric 

15 grid for durations of approximately 10 to 100 

16 hours; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) have a lifetime of— 

18 ‘‘(I) not less than 1,500 cycles of dis19 charge at full output; and 

20 ‘‘(II) 20 years of operation; and 

21 ‘‘(C) can store energy over several months 

22 and address seasonal scale variations in supply 

23 and demand. 

24 ‘‘(5) COST TARGETS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Cost targets developed 

2 by the Secretary under paragraph (2)(B) 

3 shall— 

4 ‘‘(i) be for energy storage costs across 

5 all types of energy storage technology; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) include technology costs, installa7 tion costs, balance of services costs, and 

8 soft costs. 

9 ‘‘(B) TARGET UPDATES; SUBTARGETS.— 

10 Not less frequently than once every 5 years 

11 during the 10-year period beginning on the date 

12 of enactment of the BEST Act, the Secretary 

13 shall— 

14 ‘‘(i) revise the cost targets developed 

15 under paragraph (2)(B) to be more strin16 gent, based on— 

17 ‘‘(I) a technology-neutral ap18 proach that considers all types of en19 ergy storage deployment scenarios, in20 cluding individual technologies, tech21 nology combination use profiles, and 

22 integrated control system applications; 

23 ‘‘(II) input from a variety of 

24 stakeholders, including the stake25 holders described in subsection (i)(3); 


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1 ‘‘(III) the inclusion and use of 

2 existing infrastructure; and 

3 ‘‘(IV) the ability to optimize the 

4 integration of intermittent renewable 

5 energy generation technology and dis6 tributed energy resources; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) establish cost subtargets for 

8 technologies and applications relating to 

9 the energy storage systems described in 

10 paragraph (4), taking into consideration— 

11 ‘‘(I) electricity market prices; and 

12 ‘‘(II) the goal of being cost-com13 petitive in specific markets for electric 

14 grid products and services. 

15 ‘‘(6) DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than Sep17 tember 30, 2023, under the program, the Sec18 retary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, 

19 enter into agreements to carry out not more 

20 than 5 grid-scale energy storage system dem21 onstration projects. 

22 ‘‘(B) OBJECTIVES.—Each demonstration 

23 project carried out under subparagraph (A) 

24 shall be designed to further the development of 


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1 the energy storage systems described in para2 graph (4). 

3 ‘‘(C) NO PROJECT OWNERSHIP INTER4 EST.—The Federal Government shall not hold 

5 any equity or other ownership interest in any 

6 grid-scale energy storage system that is part of 

7 a demonstration project under this paragraph. 

8 ‘‘(7) TESTING AND VALIDATION.—The Sec9 retary shall accelerate the standardized testing and 

10 validation of grid-scale energy storage systems under 

11 the program through collaboration with one or more 

12 National Laboratories (as defined in section 2 of the 

13 Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15801)), in14 cluding by developing testing and evaluation meth15 odologies for— 

16 ‘‘(A) standardized grid performance testing 

17 for energy storage systems, materials, and tech18 nologies during each stage of development, be19 ginning with the research stage and ending with 

20 the deployment stage, including performance 

21 testing with charge and discharge protocols to 

22 evaluate power capability, energy output, and 

23 degradation during cycling and calendar aging 

24 on earliest stage commercially viable prototypes 

25 (commonly less than 100 kilowatts); and 


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1 ‘‘(B) accelerated life testing protocols to 

2 predict estimated lifetime metrics with accu3 racy. 

4 ‘‘(8) COORDINATION.—To accelerate the devel5 opment of grid-scale energy storage systems under 

6 the program, and pursuant to subsection (n), the 

7 Secretary shall coordinate with— 

8 ‘‘(A) offices within the Department of En9 ergy conducting energy storage research, such 

10 as the Advanced Research Projects Agency–En11 ergy, the Office of Science, and the Office of 

12 Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; 

13 ‘‘(B) Federal agencies that are carrying 

14 out initiatives to increase energy security or re15 liability, such as the Department of Defense, 

16 the National Science Foundation, the Federal 

17 Energy Regulatory Commission, and the De18 partment of Homeland Security; 

19 ‘‘(C) program offices that aim to increase 

20 domestic manufacturing and production, such 

21 as the Office of Advanced Manufacturing in the 

22 Department of Energy and the National Insti23 tute of Standards and Technology in the De24 partment of Commerce; and 


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1 ‘‘(D) members of private industry to ad2 vance the development of commercially viable 

3 grid-scale energy storage systems.’’. 

4 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—The 

5 United States Energy Storage Competitiveness Act of 

6 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17231) is amended, in subsection (q) (as 

7 redesignated by subsection (a)(1))— 

8 (1) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

9 end; 

10 (2) in paragraph (6), by striking the period at 

11 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

12 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(7) the research, development, and demonstra14 tion program of grid-scale energy storage systems 

15 under subsection (l) $60,000,000 for each of fiscal 

16 years 2020 through 2024.’’. 

17 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

18 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Better Energy Storage 

19 Technology Act’’ or the ‘‘BEST Act’’. 

20 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

21 In this Act: 

22 (1) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

23 means the Department of Energy. 


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1 (2) ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEM.—The term ‘‘en2 ergy storage system’’ means any system, equipment, 

3 facility, or technology that— 

4 (A) is capable of absorbing or converting 

5 energy, storing the energy for a period of time, 

6 and dispatching the energy; and 

7 (B)(i) uses mechanical, electrochemical, 

8 thermal, electrolysis, or other processes to convert 

9 and store electric energy that was generated at 

10 an earlier time for use at a later time; or 

11 (ii) stores energy in an electric, thermal, or 

12 gaseous state for direct use for heating or cooling 

13 at a later time in a manner that avoids the need 

14 to use electricity or other fuel sources at that 

15 later time, such as a grid-enabled water heater. 

16 (3) NATIONAL LABORATORY.—The term ‘‘Na17 tional Laboratory’’ has the meaning given the term in 

18 section 2 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 

19 15801). 

20 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

21 the Secretary of Energy, unless otherwise specified. 

22 SEC. 3. ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEM RESEARCH, DEVELOP23 MENT, AND DEPLOYMENT PROGRAM. 

24 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 

25 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall estabVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:04 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1602.RS S1602

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1 lish a program, to be known as the ‘‘Energy Storage System 

2 Research, Development, and Deployment Program’’ (re3 ferred to in this section as the ‘‘program’’). 

4 (b) INITIAL PROGRAM OBJECTIVES.—The program 

5 shall focus on research, development, and deployment of— 

6 (1) energy storage systems designed to further the 

7 development of technologies— 

8 (A) for large-scale commercial deployment; 

9 (B) for deployment at cost targets estab10 lished by the Secretary; 

11 (C) for hourly and subhourly durations re12 quired to provide reliability services to the grid; 

13 (D) for daily durations, which have— 

14 (i) the capacity to discharge energy for 

15 a minimum of 6 hours; and 

16 (ii) a system lifetime of at least 20 

17 years under regular operation; 

18 (E) for weekly or monthly durations, which 

19 have— 

20 (i) the capacity to discharge energy for 

21 10 to 100 hours, at a minimum; and 

22 (ii) a system lifetime of at least 20 

23 years under regular operation; and 

24 (F) for seasonal durations, which have— 


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1 (i) the capability to address seasonal 

2 variations in supply and demand; and 

3 (ii) a system lifetime of at least 20 

4 years under regular operation; 

5 (2) distributed energy storage technologies and 

6 applications, including building-grid integration; 

7 (3) transportation energy storage technologies 

8 and applications, including vehicle-grid integration; 

9 (4) cost-effective systems and methods for— 

10 (A) the reclamation, recycling, and disposal 

11 of energy storage materials, including lithium, 

12 cobalt, nickel, and graphite; and 

13 (B) the reuse and repurposing of energy 

14 storage system technologies; 

15 (5) advanced control methods for energy storage 

16 systems; 

17 (6) pumped hydroelectric energy storage systems 

18 to advance— 

19 (A) adoption of innovative technologies, in20 cluding— 

21 (i) adjustable-speed, ternary, and other 

22 new pumping and generating equipment de23 signs; 

24 (ii) modular systems; 


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1 (iii) closed-loop systems, including 

2 mines and quarries; and 

3 (iv) other critical equipment and mate4 rials for pumped hydroelectric energy stor5 age, as determined by the Secretary; and 

6 (B) reductions of equipment costs, civil 

7 works costs, and construction times for pumped 

8 hydroelectric energy storage projects, with the 

9 goal of reducing those costs by 50 percent; 

10 (7) models and tools to demonstrate the benefits 

11 of energy storage to— 

12 (A) power and water supply systems; 

13 (B) electric generation portfolio optimiza14 tion; and 

15 (C) expanded deployment of other renewable 

16 energy technologies, including in hybrid energy 

17 storage systems; and 

18 (8) energy storage use cases from individual and 

19 combination technology applications, including value 

20 from various-use cases and energy storage services. 

21 (c) TESTING AND VALIDATION.—In coordination with 

22 1 or more National Laboratories, the Secretary shall accel23 erate the development, standardized testing, and validation 

24 of energy storage systems under the program by developing 

25 testing and evaluation methodologies for— 


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1 (1) storage technologies, controls, and power elec2 tronics for energy storage systems under a variety of 

3 operating conditions; 

4 (2) standardized and grid performance testing 

5 for energy storage systems, materials, and technologies 

6 during each stage of development, beginning with the 

7 research stage and ending with the deployment stage; 

8 (3) reliability, safety, and durability testing 

9 under standard and evolving duty cycles; and 

10 (4) accelerated life testing protocols to predict es11 timated lifetime metrics with accuracy. 

12 (d) PERIODIC EVALUATION OF PROGRAM OBJEC13 TIVES.—Not less frequently than once every calendar year, 

14 the Secretary shall evaluate and, if necessary, update the 

15 program objectives to ensure that the program continues to 

16 advance energy storage systems toward widespread commer17 cial deployment by lowering the costs and increasing the 

18 duration of energy storage resources. 

19 (e) ENERGY STORAGE STRATEGIC PLAN.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall develop a 

21 10-year strategic plan for the program, and update 

22 the plan, in accordance with this subsection. 

23 (2) CONTENTS.—The strategic plan developed 

24 under paragraph (1) shall— 


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1 (A) be coordinated with and integrated 

2 across other relevant offices in the Department; 

3 (B) to the extent practicable, include 

4 metrics that can be used to evaluate storage tech5 nologies; 

6 (C) identify Department programs that— 

7 (i) support the research and develop8 ment activities described in subsection (b) 

9 and the demonstration projects under sec10 tion 4; and 

11 (ii)(I) do not support the activities or 

12 projects described in clause (i); but 

13 (II) are important to the development 

14 of energy storage systems and the mission of 

15 the Department, as determined by the Sec16 retary; 

17 (D) include expected timelines for— 

18 (i) the accomplishment of relevant ob19 jectives under current programs of the De20 partment relating to energy storage systems; 

21 and 

22 (ii) the commencement of any new ini23 tiatives within the Department relating to 

24 energy storage systems to accomplish those 

25 objectives; and 


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1 (E) incorporate relevant activities described 

2 in the Grid Modernization Initiative Multi-Year 

3 Program Plan. 

4 (3) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 

5 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

6 Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Energy 

7 and Natural Resources of the Senate and the Commit8 tees on Energy and Commerce and Science, Space, 

9 and Technology of the House of Representatives the 

10 strategic plan developed under paragraph (1). 

11 (4) UPDATES TO PLAN.—The Secretary— 

12 (A) shall annually review the strategic plan 

13 developed under paragraph (1); and 

14 (B) may periodically revise the strategic 

15 plan as appropriate. 

16 (f) LEVERAGING OF RESOURCES.—The program may 

17 be led by a specific office of the Department, but shall be 

18 cross-cutting in nature, so that in carrying out activities 

19 under the program, the Secretary (or a designee of the Sec20 retary charged with leading the program) shall leverage ex21 isting Federal resources, including, at a minimum, the ex22 pertise and resources of— 

23 (1) the Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy 

24 Reliability; 


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1 (2) the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renew2 able Energy, including the Water Power Technologies 

3 Office; and 

4 (3) the Office of Science, including— 

5 (A) the Basic Energy Sciences Program; 

6 (B) the Advanced Scientific Computing Re7 search Program; 

8 (C) the Biological and Environmental Re9 search Program; and 

10 (4) the Electricity Storage Research Initiative 

11 established under section 975 of the Energy Policy 

12 Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16315). 

13 (g) PROTECTING PRIVACY AND SECURITY.—In car14 rying out this section, the Secretary shall identify, incor15 porate, and follow best practices for protecting the privacy 

16 of individuals and businesses and the respective sensitive 

17 data of the individuals and businesses, including by man18 aging privacy risk and implementing the Fair Information 

19 Practice Principles of the Federal Trade Commission for 

20 the collection, use, disclosure, and retention of individual 

21 electric consumer information in accordance with the Office 

22 of Management and Budget Circular A–130 (or successor 

23 circulars). 


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1 SEC. 4. ENERGY STORAGE DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS; 

2 PILOT GRANT PROGRAM. 

3 (a) DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.—Not later than Sep4 tember 30, 2023, the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent 

5 practicable, enter into agreements to carry out not fewer 

6 than 5 energy storage system demonstration projects, in7 cluding at least 1 energy storage system demonstration 

8 project designed to further the development of technologies 

9 described in subparagraph (E) or (F) of section 3(b)(1). 

10 (b) ENERGY STORAGE PILOT GRANT PROGRAM.— 

11 (1) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this 

12 subsection, the term ‘‘eligible entity’’ means— 

13 (A) a State energy office (as defined in sec14 tion 124(a) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 

15 U.S.C. 15821(a))); 

16 (B) an Indian tribe (as defined in section 

17 4 of the Native American Housing Assistance 

18 and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 

19 4103); 

20 (C) a tribal organization (as defined in sec21 tion 3765 of title 38, United States Code); 

22 (D) an institution of higher education (as 

23 defined in section 101 of the Higher Education 

24 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)); 

25 (E) an electric utility, including— 

26 (i) an electric cooperative; 


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1 (ii) a political subdivision of a State, 

2 such as a municipally owned electric util3 ity, or any agency, authority, corporation, 

4 or instrumentality of a State political sub5 division; and 

6 (iii) an investor-owned utility; and 

7 (F) a private energy storage company that 

8 is a small business concern (within the meaning 

9 of section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

10 632)). 

11 (2) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall estab12 lish a competitive grant program under which the 

13 Secretary shall award grants to eligible entities to 

14 carry out demonstration projects for pilot energy stor15 age systems. 

16 (3) SELECTION REQUIREMENTS.—In selecting el17 igible entities to receive a grant under paragraph (2), 

18 the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent prac19 ticable— 

20 (A) ensure regional diversity among eligible 

21 entities awarded grants, including ensuring par22 ticipation of eligible entities that are rural 

23 States and States with high energy costs; 

24 (B) ensure that grants are awarded for 

25 demonstration projects that— 


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1 (i) expand on the existing technology 

2 demonstration programs of the Department; 

3 (ii) are designed to achieve 1 or more 

4 of the objectives described in paragraph (4); 

5 and 

6 (iii) inject or withdraw energy from 

7 the bulk power system, electric distribution 

8 system, building energy system, or 

9 microgrid (grid-connected or islanded mode) 

10 where the project is located; and 

11 (C) give consideration to proposals from eli12 gible entities for securing energy storage through 

13 competitive procurement or contract for service. 

14 (4) OBJECTIVES.—Each demonstration project 

15 carried out by a grant awarded under paragraph (2) 

16 shall have 1 or more of the following objectives: 

17 (A) To improve the security of critical in18 frastructure and emergency response systems. 

19 (B) To improve the reliability of trans20 mission and distribution systems, particularly 

21 in rural areas, including high-energy-cost rural 

22 areas. 

23 (C) To optimize transmission or distribu24 tion system operation and power quality to defer 

25 or avoid costs of replacing or upgrading electric 


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1 grid infrastructure, including transformers and 

2 substations. 

3 (D) To supply energy at peak periods of de4 mand on the electric grid or during periods of 

5 significant variation of electric grid supply. 

6 (E) To reduce peak loads of homes and 

7 businesses. 

8 (F) To improve and advance power conver9 sion systems. 

10 (G) To provide ancillary services for grid 

11 stability and management. 

12 (H) To integrate renewable energy resource 

13 production. 

14 (I) To increase the feasibility of microgrids 

15 (grid-connected or islanded mode). 

16 (J) To enable the use of stored energy in 

17 forms other than electricity to support the nat18 ural gas system and other industrial processes. 

19 (K) To integrate fast charging of electric ve20 hicles. 

21 (L) To improve energy efficiency. 

22 (c) REPORTS.—Not less frequently than once every 2 

23 years for the duration of the programs under subsections 

24 (a) and (b), the Secretary shall submit to Congress and 


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1 make publicly available a report describing the performance 

2 of those programs. 

3 (d) NO PROJECT OWNERSHIP INTEREST.—The Fed4 eral Government shall not hold any equity or other owner5 ship interest in any energy storage system that is part of 

6 a project under this section unless the holding is agreed to 

7 by each participant of the project. 

8 SEC. 5. LONG-DURATION DEMONSTRATION INITIATIVE AND 

9 JOINT PROGRAM. 

10 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

11 (1) DIRECTOR OF ARPA–E.—The term ‘‘Director 

12 of ARPA–E’’ has the meaning given the term in sec13 tion 5012(a) of the America COMPETES Act (42 

14 U.S.C. 16538(a)). 

15 (2) DIRECTOR OF ESTCP.—The term ‘‘Director of 

16 ESTCP’’ means the Secretary of Defense, acting 

17 through the Director of the Environmental Security 

18 Technology Certification Program of the Department 

19 of Defense. 

20 (3) INITIATIVE.—The term ‘‘Initiative’’ means 

21 the demonstration initiative established under sub22 section (b). 

23 (4) JOINT PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘Joint Pro24 gram’’ means the joint program established under 

25 subsection (d). 


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1 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

2 the Secretary of Energy, acting through the Director 

3 of ARPA–E. 

4 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF INITIATIVE.—Not later than 

5 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec6 retary shall establish a demonstration initiative composed 

7 of demonstration projects focused on the development of 

8 long-duration energy storage technologies. 

9 (c) SELECTION OF PROJECTS.—To the maximum ex10 tent practicable, in selecting demonstration projects to par11 ticipate in the Initiative, the Secretary shall— 

12 (1) ensure a range of technology types; 

13 (2) ensure regional diversity among projects; and 

14 (3) consider bulk power level, distribution power 

15 level, behind-the-meter, microgrid (grid-connected or 

16 islanded mode), and off-grid applications. 

17 (d) JOINT PROGRAM.— 

18 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—As part of the Initiative, 

19 the Secretary, in consultation with the Director of 

20 ESTCP, shall establish within the Department of En21 ergy a joint program to carry out projects— 

22 (A) to demonstrate promising long-duration 

23 energy storage technologies at different scales; 

24 and 


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1 (B) to help new, innovative long-duration 

2 energy storage technologies become commercially 

3 viable. 

4 (2) MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING.—Not 

5 later than 200 days after the date of enactment of this 

6 Act, the Secretary shall enter into a memorandum of 

7 understanding with the Director of ESTCP to admin8 ister the Joint Program. 

9 (3) INFRASTRUCTURE.—In carrying out the 

10 Joint Program, the Secretary and the Director of 

11 ESTCP shall— 

12 (A) use existing test-bed infrastructure at— 

13 (i) Department of Energy facilities; 

14 and 

15 (ii) Department of Defense installa16 tions; and 

17 (B) develop new infrastructure for identi18 fied projects, if appropriate. 

19 (4) GOALS AND METRICS.—The Secretary and 

20 the Director of ESTCP shall develop goals and 

21 metrics for technological progress under the Joint 

22 Program consistent with energy resilience and energy 

23 security policies. 

24 (5) SELECTION OF PROJECTS.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—To the maximum extent 

2 practicable, in selecting projects to participate in 

3 the Joint Program, the Secretary and the Direc4 tor of ESTCP shall— 

5 (i) ensure that projects are carried out 

6 under conditions that represent a variety of 

7 environments with different physical condi8 tions and market constraints; and 

9 (ii) ensure an appropriate balance 

10 of— 

11 (I) larger, higher-cost projects; 

12 and 

13 (II) smaller, lower-cost projects. 

14 (B) PRIORITY.—In carrying out the Joint 

15 Program, the Secretary and the Director of 

16 ESTCP shall give priority to demonstration 

17 projects that— 

18 (i) make available to the public project 

19 information that will accelerate deployment 

20 of long-duration energy storage technologies; 

21 and 

22 (ii) will be carried out in the field. 

23 SEC. 6. TECHNICAL AND PLANNING ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

24 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 (1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti2 ty’’ means— 

3 (A) an electric cooperative; 

4 (B) a political subdivision of a State, such 

5 as a municipally owned electric utility, or any 

6 agency, authority, corporation, or instrumen7 tality of a State political subdivision; 

8 (C) a not-for-profit entity that is in a part9 nership with not less than 6 entities described in 

10 subparagraph (A) or (B); and 

11 (D) an investor-owned utility. 

12 (2) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means the 

13 technical and planning assistance program estab14 lished under subsection (b)(1). 

15 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 

17 a technical and planning assistance program to assist 

18 eligible entities in identifying, evaluating, planning, 

19 designing, and developing processes to procure energy 

20 storage systems. 

21 (2) ASSISTANCE AND GRANTS.—Under the pro22 gram, the Secretary shall— 

23 (A) provide technical and planning assist24 ance, including disseminating information, di25 rectly to eligible entities; and 


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1 (B) award grants to eligible entities to con2 tract to obtain technical and planning assistance 

3 from outside experts. 

4 (3) FOCUS.—In carrying out the program, the 

5 Secretary shall focus on energy storage system projects 

6 that have the greatest potential for— 

7 (A) strengthening the reliability and resil8 iency of energy infrastructure; 

9 (B) reducing the cost of energy storage sys10 tems; 

11 (C) improving the feasibility of microgrids 

12 (grid-connected or islanded mode), particularly 

13 in rural areas, including high energy cost rural 

14 areas; 

15 (D) reducing consumer electricity costs; or 

16 (E) maximizing local job creation. 

17 (c) TECHNICAL AND PLANNING ASSISTANCE.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Technical and planning as19 sistance provided under the program shall include as20 sistance with 1 or more of the following activities re21 lating to energy storage systems: 

22 (A) Identification of opportunities to use 

23 energy storage systems. 

24 (B) Feasibility studies to assess the poten25 tial for development of new energy storage sysVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:04 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1602.RS S1602

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1 tems or improvement of existing energy storage 

2 systems. 

3 (C) Assessment of technical and economic 

4 characteristics, including a cost-benefit analysis. 

5 (D) Utility interconnection. 

6 (E) Permitting and siting issues. 

7 (F) Business planning and financial anal8 ysis. 

9 (G) Engineering design. 

10 (H) Resource adequacy planning. 

11 (I) Resilience planning and valuation. 

12 (2) EXCLUSION.—Technical and planning assist13 ance provided under the program shall not be used to 

14 pay any person for influencing or attempting to in15 fluence an officer or employee of any Federal, State, 

16 or local agency, a Member of Congress, an employee 

17 of a Member of Congress, a State or local legislative 

18 body, or an employee of a State or local legislative 

19 body. 

20 (d) INFORMATION DISSEMINATION.—The information 

21 disseminated under subsection (b)(2)(A) shall include— 

22 (1) information relating to the topics described 

23 in subsection (c)(1), including case studies of success24 ful examples; 


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1 (2) computational tools or software for assess2 ment, design, and operation and maintenance of en3 ergy storage systems; 

4 (3) public databases that track existing and 

5 planned energy storage systems; 

6 (4) best practices for the utility and grid oper7 ator business processes associated with the topics de8 scribed in subsection (c)(1); and 

9 (5) relevant State policies or regulations associ10 ated with the topics described in subsection (c)(1). 

11 (e) APPLICATIONS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall seek ap13 plications for the program— 

14 (A) on a competitive, merit-reviewed basis; 

15 and 

16 (B) on a periodic basis, but not less fre17 quently than once every 12 months. 

18 (2) APPLICATION.—An eligible entity desiring to 

19 apply for the program shall submit to the Secretary 

20 an application at such time, in such manner, and 

21 containing such information as the Secretary may re22 quire, including whether the eligible entity is apply23 ing for— 

24 (A) direct technical or planning assistance 

25 under subsection (b)(2)(A); or 


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1 (B) a grant under subsection (b)(2)(B). 

2 (3) PRIORITIES.—In selecting eligible entities for 

3 technical and planning assistance under the program, 

4 the Secretary shall give priority to eligible entities de5 scribed in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection 

6 (a)(1). 

7 (f) REPORTS.—The Secretary shall submit to Congress 

8 and make available to the public— 

9 (1) not less frequently than once every 2 years, 

10 a report describing the performance of the program, 

11 including a synthesis and analysis of any informa12 tion the Secretary requires grant recipients to provide 

13 to the Secretary as a condition of receiving a grant; 

14 and 

15 (2) on termination of the program, an assess16 ment of the success of, and education provided by, the 

17 measures carried out by eligible entities under the 

18 program. 

19 (g) COST-SHARING.—Activities under this section shall 

20 be subject to the cost-sharing requirements under section 

21 988 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16352). 


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1 SEC. 7. ENERGY STORAGE MATERIALS RECYCLING PRIZE 

2 COMPETITION. 

3 Section 1008 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 

4 U.S.C. 16396) is amended by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(g) ENERGY STORAGE MATERIALS RECYCLING PRIZE

7 COMPETITION.— 

8 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION OF CRITICAL ENERGY STORAGE

9 MATERIALS.—In this subsection, the term ‘critical en10 ergy storage materials’ includes— 

11 ‘‘(A) lithium; 

12 ‘‘(B) cobalt; 

13 ‘‘(C) nickel; 

14 ‘‘(D) graphite; and 

15 ‘‘(E) any other material determined by the 

16 Secretary to be critical to the continued growing 

17 supply of energy storage resources. 

18 ‘‘(2) PRIZE AUTHORITY.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—As part of the program 

20 established under subsection (a), the Secretary 

21 shall establish an award program, to be known 

22 as the ‘Energy Storage Materials Recycling Prize 

23 Competition’ (referred to in this subsection as 

24 the ‘program’), under which the Secretary shall 

25 carry out prize competitions and make awards 


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1 to advance the recycling of critical energy stor2 age materials. 

3 ‘‘(B) FREQUENCY.—To the maximum extent 

4 practicable, the Secretary shall carry out a com5 petition under the program not less frequently 

6 than once every calendar year. 

7 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBILITY.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to win a 

9 prize under the program, an individual or enti10 ty— 

11 ‘‘(i) shall have complied with the re12 quirements of the competition as described 

13 in the announcement for that competition 

14 published in the Federal Register by the 

15 Secretary under paragraph (6); 

16 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a private entity, 

17 shall be incorporated in the United States 

18 and maintain a primary place of business 

19 in the United States; 

20 ‘‘(iii) in the case of an individual, 

21 whether participating singly or in a group, 

22 shall be a citizen of, or an alien lawfully 

23 admitted for permanent residence in, the 

24 United States. 


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1 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSIONS.—The following entities 

2 and individuals shall not be eligible to win a 

3 prize under the program: 

4 ‘‘(i) A Federal entity. 

5 ‘‘(ii) A Federal employee (including an 

6 employee of a National Laboratory) acting 

7 within the scope of employment. 

8 ‘‘(4) AWARDS.—In carrying out the program, the 

9 Secretary shall award cash prizes, in amounts to be 

10 determined by the Secretary, to each individual or en11 tity selected through a competitive process to develop 

12 advanced methods or technologies to recycle critical 

13 energy storage materials from energy storage systems. 

14 ‘‘(5) CRITERIA.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall es16 tablish objective, merit-based criteria for award17 ing the prizes in each competition carried out 

18 under the program. 

19 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—The criteria estab20 lished under subparagraph (A) shall prioritize 

21 advancements in methods or technologies that 

22 present the greatest potential for large-scale com23 mercial deployment. 

24 ‘‘(C) CONSULTATION.—In establishing cri25 teria under subparagraph (A), the Secretary 


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1 shall consult with appropriate members of pri2 vate industry involved in the commercial deploy3 ment of energy storage systems. 

4 ‘‘(6) ADVERTISING AND SOLICITATION OF COM5 PETITORS.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall an7 nounce each prize competition under the pro8 gram by publishing a notice in the Federal Reg9 ister. 

10 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—Each notice pub11 lished under subparagraph (A) shall describe the 

12 essential elements of the competition, such as— 

13 ‘‘(i) the subject of the competition; 

14 ‘‘(ii) the duration of the competition; 

15 ‘‘(iii) the eligibility requirements for 

16 participation in the competition; 

17 ‘‘(iv) the process for participants to 

18 register for the competition; 

19 ‘‘(v) the amount of the prize; and 

20 ‘‘(vi) the criteria for awarding the 

21 prize. 

22 ‘‘(7) JUDGES.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For each prize competi24 tion under the program, the Secretary shall as25 semble a panel of qualified judges to select the 


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1 winner or winners of the competition on the 

2 basis of the criteria established under paragraph 

3 (5). 

4 ‘‘(B) SELECTION.—The judges for each com5 petition shall include appropriate members of 

6 private industry involved in the commercial de7 ployment of energy storage systems. 

8 ‘‘(C) CONFLICTS.—An individual may not 

9 serve as a judge in a prize competition under the 

10 program if the individual, the spouse of the indi11 vidual, any child of the individual, or any other 

12 member of the household of the individual— 

13 ‘‘(i) has a personal or financial inter14 est in, or is an employee, officer, director, or 

15 agent of, any entity that is a registered par16 ticipant in the prize competition for which 

17 the individual will serve as a judge; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) has a familial or financial rela19 tionship with a registered participant in 

20 the prize competition for which the indi21 vidual will serve as a judge. 

22 ‘‘(8) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 60 

23 days after the date on which the first prize is award24 ed under the program, and annually thereafter, the 

25 Secretary shall submit to Congress a report that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) identifies each award recipient; 

2 ‘‘(B) describes the advanced methods or 

3 technologies developed by each award recipient; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(C) specifies actions being taken by the De6 partment toward commercial application of all 

7 methods or technologies with respect to which a 

8 prize has been awarded under the program. 

9 ‘‘(9) ANTI-DEFICIENCY ACT.—The Secretary shall 

10 carry out the program in accordance with section 

11 1341 of title 31, United States Code (commonly re12 ferred to as the ‘Anti-Deficiency Act’). 

13 ‘‘(10) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

14 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

15 this subsection $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

16 2020 through 2024, to remain available until ex17 pended.’’. 

18 SEC. 8. REGULATORY ACTIONS TO ENCOURAGE ENERGY 

19 STORAGE DEPLOYMENT. 

20 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

21 (1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

22 means the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. 

23 (2) ELECTRIC STORAGE RESOURCE.—The term 

24 ‘‘electric storage resource’’ means a resource capable of 

25 receiving electric energy from the grid and storing 


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1 that electric energy for later injection back into the 

2 grid. 

3 (b) REGULATORY ACTION.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

5 the date of enactment of this Act, the Commission 

6 shall issue a regulation to identify the eligibility of, 

7 and process for, electric storage resources— 

8 (A) to receive cost recovery through Com9 mission-regulated rates for the transmission of 

10 electric energy in interstate commerce; and 

11 (B) that receive cost recovery under sub12 paragraph (A) to receive compensation for other 

13 services (such as the sale of energy, capacity, or 

14 ancillary services) without regard to whether 

15 those services are provided concurrently with the 

16 transmission service described in subparagraph 

17 (A). 

18 (2) PROHIBITION OF DUPLICATE RECOVERY.— 

19 Any regulation issued under paragraph (1) shall pre20 clude the receipt of unjust and unreasonable double 

21 recovery for electric storage resources providing serv22 ices described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of that 

23 paragraph. 

24 (c) ELECTRIC STORAGE RESOURCES TECHNICAL CON25 FERENCE.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

2 the date of enactment of this Act, the Commission 

3 shall convene a technical conference on the potential 

4 for electric storage resources to improve the operation 

5 of electric systems. 

6 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The technical conference 

7 under paragraph (1) shall— 

8 (A) identify opportunities for further con9 sideration of electric storage resources in regional 

10 and interregional transmission planning proc11 esses within the jurisdiction of the Commission; 

12 (B) identify all energy, capacity, and ancil13 lary service products, market designs, or rules 

14 that— 

15 (i) are within the jurisdiction of the 

16 Commission; and 

17 (ii) enable and compensate for the use 

18 of electric storage resources that improve the 

19 operation of electric systems; 

20 (C) examine additional products, market 

21 designs, or rules that would enable and com22 pensate for the use of electric storage resources 

23 for improving the operation of electric systems; 

24 and 


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1 (D) examine the functional value of electric 

2 storage resources at the transmission and dis3 tribution system interface for purposes of pro4 viding electric system reliability. 

5 SEC. 9. COORDINATION. 

6 To the maximum extent practicable, the Secretary 

7 shall coordinate the activities under this Act (including ac8 tivities conducted pursuant to the amendments made by 

9 this Act) among the offices and employees of the Depart10 ment, other Federal agencies, and other relevant entities— 

11 (1) to ensure appropriate collaboration; and 

12 (2) to avoid unnecessary duplication of those ac13 tivities. 

14 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

15 There are authorized to be appropriated— 

16 (1) to carry out section 3, $100,000,000 for each 

17 of fiscal years 2020 through 2024, to remain available 

18 until expended; 

19 (2) to carry out section 4, $100,000,000 for each 

20 of fiscal years 2020 through 2024, to remain available 

21 until expended; 

22 (3) to carry out section 5, $50,000,000 for each 

23 of fiscal years 2020 through 2024, to remain available 

24 until expended; and 


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1 (4) to carry out section 6, $20,000,000 for each 

2 of fiscal years 2020 through 2024, to remain available 

3 until expended. 

Amend the title so as to read: ‘‘A bill to support research, development, and demonstration programs relating to energy storage systems, and for other purposes.’’. 


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Calendar No. 255 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1602 

[Report No. 116–135] 

A BILL 

To amend the United States Energy Storage Compurposes. grid-scale energy storage systems, and for other development, and demonstration program for petitiveness Act of 2007 to establish a research, 

OCTOBER 22, 2019 

Reported with an amendment and an amendment to the 

title 


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