Where Georgia Power plans to install massive batteries to meet electricity demand

Georgia Power, the state’s largest utility, has revealed details about where it will install its next set of massive batteries, part of its plan to meet a surge in electricity demand that the company says is on the horizon.

In an August filing with regulators at the Georgia Public Utilities Commission, the company disclosed that it would build 500 megawatts of new battery energy storage systems, also known as BESS, at four sites across the state. In April, Georgia Power won approval from the PSC to bypass the normal bidding process and build the battery facilities itself.

In that same vote, the PSC also approved new oil and natural gas-fired units and allowed Georgia Power to continue purchasing electricity from coal and gas plants.–Power plants were set on fire in Mississippi and Florida.

BESSs come in various shapes and sizes, but most consist of batteries stacked in metal cases equipped with cooling fans to prevent overheating.

The basic technology has been around for years, but the systems have recently gained popularity as utilities try to improve the reliability of solar and other renewables they’ve added to their portfolios.

Solar power only produces electricity when the sun is shining, but pairing panels with a BESS system allows the batteries to be recharged with additional solar electricity during low-use hours. Then, on hot afternoons and other times when electricity use spikes, the electrons stored in the batteries can be instantly transferred to the grid to meet the increased demand.

Georgia Power said it is conducting final tests on its first-ever BESS, a 65-megawatt system outside Columbus.

Under plans unveiled last Friday, Georgia Power plans to build:

• A 265-megawatt battery system in Cherokee County, near Ball Ground. The batteries will be installed at the same location, known as the McGrau Ford site, where a BESS system of the same size is already under construction. The batteries will be charged there with electricity from the grid.

• A 128-megawatt battery system at Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins, about 20 miles south of Macon. The batteries will be charged primarily by an existing Georgia Power solar farm on the base.

• A 57.5-megawatt battery system at Plant Hammond, a closed coal-fired power plant near Rome. The company said Plant Hammond was ideal because of the “existing infrastructure” at the site.

• A 49.5-megawatt battery system will be installed at Moody Air Force Base, about 12 miles north of Valdosta. The batteries will be paired with a solar installation on the base.

For all four projects, the company has selected Tesla-made battery units, known as Megapack 2 XL. All systems are expected to be operational between May and November 2026.

Georgia Power has not disclosed the project prices, arguing that the information is a trade secret, but the filing with the PSC is the first step in laying the groundwork for the utility to ask regulators to let it add the cost to customer rates.

The company is expected to add even more battery storage soon. As part of a plan approved by the PSC in April to try to avert a so-called demand crisis, the company is expected to put out a tender for an additional 500 megawatts of batteries in the near future.