California regulators approved Intersect Power’s Darden Clean Energy Project, which is expected to be the largest battery energy storage system in the world when completed.

The California Energy Commission voted June 11 to approve the project, which includes a 1.15-GW solar facility and 1.15 GW of four-hour battery storage. The solar facility will consist of about 3.1 million panels.

The decision marks the commission’s first project approval under its streamlined “opt-in” permitting process.

“The transition to 100% clean electricity by 2045 requires bold, utility-scale projects like Darden,” CEC Chair David Hochschild said in a statement. “This project is significant not only for its size but its cutting-edge design and safety measures.”

The CEC reported in April that California had 15,763 MW of battery storage: 13,248 MW of utility-scale storage, 1,829 MW of residential storage and 686 MW of commercial storage. The total puts the state at about 30% of its storage target of 52,000 MW by 2045.

“The key to a cleaner, more reliable power grid is batteries – and no other jurisdiction on the planet, save China, comes even close to our rapid deployment,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement in May.

Community Benefits

Intersect Power subsidiary IP Darden I will build the Darden project on 9,500 acres of retired agricultural land in Fresno County. It will interconnect to one of Pacific Gas and Electric’s existing 500-kV transmission lines, Los Banos-Midway No. 2.

At one point, the Darden project included an 800-MW green hydrogen facility, but that component was scrapped last year. (See 2 Huge Solar-plus-storage Projects Planned in California.)

Under the CEC’s opt-in requirements, projects must deliver community and economic benefits. The Darden project will invest $2 million into the community over the next decade, starting with $320,000 to Centro La Familia Advocacy Services, a nonprofit that supports crime victims, family wellness and civic engagement in rural communities.

In addition, the project will produce more than 2,000 prevailing-wage construction jobs and an estimated $169 million in economic benefits over its 35-year lifetime.

The CEC’s opt-in certification is a voluntary process intended to streamline permitting of renewable energy projects.

Under the opt-in procedure, the CEC becomes the lead agency for permitting and state environmental review, consolidating the permitting process. The environmental review for a project must be completed within 270 days of the project application being deemed complete, unless the proposal changes significantly.

Intersect Power has another solar-plus-storage proposal moving through the opt-in certification process. The Perkins Renewable Energy Project, proposed by subsidiary IP Perkins, would be a 1.15-GW solar facility in Imperial County. It also would include up to 1.15 GW of four-hour battery storage, or up to 4,600 MWh of storage.

Another opt-in project, the Compass Energy Storage Project, was the subject of a public meeting earlier in June. The proposed 250-MW project in Southern California has drawn a slew of comments, many voicing concerns about the safety of the facility. (See CEC Considers Opposition to Compass Battery Project in Southern California.)

In a release about the approval of the Darden project, the CEC said the safety of battery storage facilities “remains a top priority.”

In 2024, the governor launched a state-level collaborative to continue to strengthen safety standards for battery storage systems. The efforts include updating the California fire code to include specific fire safety requirements for stationary lithium-ion battery storage systems.

The California Public Utilities Commission also approved new safety standards and enhanced oversight of emergency plans for grid-scale battery energy storage systems.