Governor Gavin Newsom Authorizes $450 Million for Utility-Scale Battery Storage and Grid Resiliency

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive directive on Monday allocating $450 million from the California Climate Commitment Fund to accelerate the construction of 2.4 gigawatts of utility-scale battery storage facilities across the Central Valley, Inland Empire, and northern Sacramento region.

The funding, administered through the California Energy Commission (CEC) and the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), provides capital grants for long-duration iron-flow, lithium-iron-phosphate, and compressed-air storage technologies capable of discharging power for 8 to 24 consecutive hours during periods of peak summer demand.

Transforming the Western Power Grid California's battery storage capacity has grown exponentially over the past five years, expanding from under 500 megawatts in 2019 to more than 10,000 megawatts connected to the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) grid today. The newly funded projects are designed to capture excess mid-day solar generation and release it during the critical net-peak evening window between 5:00 PM and 9:00 PM.

"California is proving that clean energy is not only the most sustainable path forward, but the most reliable and economically viable," Newsom said at an energy innovation hub in Davis. "By investing heavily in utility-scale storage, we are keeping the lights on during extreme heat events, lowering costs for ratepayers, and eliminating our dependence on aging fossil fuel peaker plants."

Regional Economic and Grid Impact The grant allocations will support major installations in Kern, Fresno, San Bernardino, and Butte counties, generating an estimated 3,200 union construction and electrical apprenticeship jobs. Project guidelines require recipient developers to execute Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) and incorporate community benefit funds for surrounding municipalities.

CEC Chair David Hochschild noted that long-duration storage is the critical missing link in California's statutory mandate to achieve 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2045 under Senate Bill 100.

"Today's deployment ensures that clean power generated during peak sunshine hours is stored and deployed efficiently when families return home and turn on their appliances," Hochschild said. "This is a blueprint for national grid modernization."