Project Traits
State: California
Congressional District: CA20
Organization Type: Commercial
Partner Organization(s) Type: None or Unknown
Energy Sector: Energy Storage,
Energy Subsector: LDES,
Project Start Year: 2025
Project Launch Year: 2030
Government Support Received: Federal Loan [Department of Energy Loan Program Office (Conditional Loan Guarantee)] for $1,760,000,000
Outcomes & Impacts
Private Investment: $275,000,000
Jobs Announced or Created: Unknown
People Served: Unknown
Projected Economic Impact: Unknown
The Biden administration offered a $1.76 billion conditional loan guarantee for GEM A-CAES, a wholly owned subsidiary of Canadian startup Hydrostor. That federal backing will help secure financing for the Willow Rock advanced compressed-air energy storage (A-CAES) project planned near the town of Rosamond in California’s eastern Kern County.
If all goes to plan, Hydrostor would begin construction late this year, with the goal of starting operations in 2030. Much of the construction will happen aboveground, as Hydrostor installs the compressors that will use electricity to pressurize air, the turbines to turn that air back into electricity, and the tanks and reservoirs containing the water that’s vital to the company’s unique approach.
Hydrostor has raised $250 million from Goldman Sachs Asset Management and $25 million from the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. It’s planning to start construction this year on its second large-scale project in Australia and has about 10 more large-scale projects under development in North America and Australia.