Executives from the California Energy Commission (CEC) and Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) moved forward with a $400,000 grant to provide funding for the installation of a stationary energy storage system on the Sacramento Regional Transit District (RT) system. The project will demonstrate the first mass transit implementation in the U.S. of cutting-edge technology developed by Siemens that can save on energy use, provide voltage stabilization, improve service reliability, and lower operational costs and maintenance. The energy storage technology known as Sitras SES already installed by Siemens in other mass transit networks in Europe and China uses ultra-capacitors to store the potential energy released during regenerative braking and then feeds this energy into accelerating vehicles thus resulting in peak power demand reduction, energy savings and a boost to the line voltage.

“We will recycle and reuse energy and save simultaneously,” said Mark Lonergan, chief operating officer of Sacramento RT. “This is the first application of the Siemens Sitras SES system in the U.S. and a true energy-saving milestone for California and the rest of the nation.” According to Dwight MacCurdy, project manager at SMUD, “This system has the potential to save RT about $25,000 a year in avoided electricity costs.”

The installation of Sitras SES will be along an 8-mile stretch of the original Folsom line that has experienced low voltage during peak service times. Sitras SES is expected to boost the light rail DC system voltage in that area by up to 65 volts DC, provide a demand reduction of up to 50 KW during peak hours and produce annual energy savings of 286,000 kWh. This translates into an annual savings of about $25,000, and offsets the need for additional electrical substations, which would use more electricity than the current system.

“Siemens generates many innovative energy saving technologies from transportation and infrastructure to water and lighting,” said Oliver Hauck, president and CEO of Siemens Transportation Systems. “After this pilot’s success, Sacramento RT will be able to install several more Sitras SES units for greater savings and improved system operation. Being able to provide these types of solutions for our customers benefits our more than 500 employees right here in Sacramento and strengthens our contribution to energy conservation.”

The Sacramento project is one of four strategic energy storage pilot programs sponsored by the California Energy Commission. The Sitras SES system will be installed in late spring and in operation by the summer of 2008. The pilot program performance will be evaluated by Sandia National Labs over the course of 12 months.