NB Power in New Brunswick is seeking applicants interested in building and operating a battery energy storage facility on a 15-year contract.

The provincial utility is seeking battery storage capable of delivering 50 megawatts for approximately four hours, providing short-duration flexibility to help manage intermittent wind and solar resources. It will also consider projects that can scale to 100 megawatts for four hours. The utility says it plans to work with the federal government to secure funding for the project.

The battery project won’t replace any other ongoing power generation projects, NB Power said in a news release. Applicants will be selected through a process that prioritizes “the best overall value for New Brunswick,” as well as the project’s ability to deliver solutions at the lowest cost, incorporate First Nations ownership and partnership, and be sited with a suitable interconnection and location. The submission deadline is April 30, 2026.

The request for expressions of interest (REOI) comes at “just the right time” for a province that needs more energy storage to support anticipated wind and solar projects, Eddie Oldfield, Atlantic Canada policy manager at the Canadian Renewable Energy Association (CanREA), said in a statement. CanREA recently submitted a procurement best practices guide to NB Power.

CanREA said the REOI comes at the end of NB Power’s 2023–2025 strategic plan, positions the utility for “a time of tremendous environmental, societal, cultural and economic change.”

“We are no doubt facing an exciting future unlike one we could have ever imagined” moving toward 2035, NB Power said, where “disruptive changes” will present an opportunity for the company to transform itself.