Texas public power utility CPS Energy on Nov. 30 issued a request for proposals seeking to add up to 900 megawatts of solar, 50 MW of energy storage and 500 MW of firming capacity.
The San Antonio public power utility noted that the RFP follows a global request for information (RFI) that closed at the end of August of this year.
CPS Energy received nearly 200 responses from energy providers around the world and used information obtained from the RFI process to enhance its new RFP.
The RFP seeks both large and small options for solar, energy storage and technologies that provide reliability, with responses expected from large, well-known firms to local, small businesses.
“Additionally, community solar and storage are also welcome technologies, so everyone from large renewable providers to residential customers have an opportunity to participate – directly or indirectly,” CPS Energy said in a news release related to the solicitation.
The utility said that the RFP is part of its new “FlexPOWER Bundle” initiative, which is designed to replace some aging generation capacity and introduce new technologies as firming capacity to provide around-the-clock energy reliability for San Antonio.
The FlexPOWER Bundle is also part of CPS Energy’s continued commitment to help Greater San Antonio reach net zero emissions by 2050 or sooner, if possible, the utility noted.
Proposals in response to the RFP will be due Feb. 1, 2021 by 3 p.m. CST.
CPS Energy expects to finalize the evaluation and shortlist candidates for the RFP by summer 2021.
Additional information about the RFP is available here.
The FlexPOWER Bundle is part of CPS Energy’s “Flexible Path,” the utility’s overarching strategy to transform the utility’s generation fleet to lower and non-emitting sources for decades to come.
As part of the August 2020 RFI process, CPS Energy also asked for information about solutions for the next phase of its award-winning energy efficiency and conservation program, called the Save for Tomorrow Energy Plan (STEP).
In January 2021, CPS Energy will release another global RFP for its “FlexSTEP” initiative “that will again be designed to increase direct customer participation and raise their satisfaction,” the utility said.
