Now the electricity generated by wind turbines can be stored for future use. Start-up General Compression has devised a system that uses compressed air for producing electricity from wind turbines. This would help supply electricity even when there is no wind.
The Attleboro-based General Compression received a round of seed funding of $5 million for commercializing a wind-power storage system using compressed air.
True, the compressed-air energy storage is not a new concept, but what General Compression did is that it revived the concept when companies are looking for meeting the growing demand for clean energy.
A compressed-air energy storage system will not just allow wind farm operators get paid for electricity only when the wind is blowing, but they can now make wind-generated power available when both the demand as well as the price is the highest, say company executives. This is surely lucrative a business concept.
Michael Marcus, the company president said,
The problem with wind is intermittency. It does not garner high prices from power purchasers because it is not schedulable…(but) you can get a higher price if it’s available on demand.
