Heller bill would incentivize energy storage investments through tax credits

Investment tax credits (ITCs) would be established to encourage business owners and homeowners to invest in energy storage technologies under bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Sen. Dean Heller (R-NV) on Friday.

The Energy Storage Tax Incentive and Deployment Act of 2017, S. 1868, would establish both a business investment credit and a residential energy property tax credit for energy storage. The incentives, which would be modeled after ITCs already in place for solar energy, would apply to both grid-connected storage systems and smaller battery systems.

“In a state with immense renewable energy potential, like Nevada, utilizing energy storage technologies is critical to the affordability, efficiency and reliability of our electrical grid,” said Heller, the chairman of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure. “The bipartisan Energy Storage Tax Incentive and Deployment Act will help attract investment to Nevada and allow our constituents to see real savings in their monthly bills.”

The business investment credit would apply to storage solutions like batteries, flywheels, pumped hydro, thermal energy and compressed air with capacity of 5 kilowatt-hours or more. The residential energy property tax credit would apply to battery storage systems with capacity of 3 kilowatt hours or more.

Although there are no direct tax incentives for storage on the books, the Department of Energy estimates there are approximately 25,000 megawatts of installed energy storage throughout the country.

“Widespread use of energy storage could help integrate renewable energy sources into our grid, support more robust microgrids and optimize the operation of all types of power generating sources,” said U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM), who introduced the bill with Heller. “This bipartisan bill will make it easier and more affordable to utilize energy storage technologies that will strengthen the renewable energy sector and support the thousands of clean energy jobs in New Mexico.”