ERVING — Conservation Commission members recently heard Erving Industries Inc.’s plans to put a 3.2-megawatt battery energy storage system on Route 2 across the road from its 97 East Main St. paper mill to store excess power the company generates from its turbine.
Tuesday’s meeting was informational only and was designed to bring the commission up to speed on the company’s plans for this 0.25-acre lithium-ion battery on 4 acres of land.
Representatives from Erving Industries and the renewable energy company Madison Energy Infrastructure, which would install and monitor the proposed battery energy storage system, shared information about their preliminary plans. The other proposal for a battery energy storage project that was being planned for Poplar Mountain by Spearmint Energy in 2025 has been rescinded, the Conservation Commission confirmed.
Erving Industries President Morris Housen explained that the purpose of the project will be to take the mill’s excess energy and store it, rather than have it go out to the energy grid. Erving Industries generates 90% of its energy needs from the turbine, requiring additional energy be purchased from National Grid.
“Instead of having to buy expensive National Grid electricity, we’ll be able to use our own power, our own electricity we’ve stored in the battery,” he explained, adding that this is a “sustainability issue” with the cost of electricity rising in Massachusetts.
The project design is preliminary and subject to change, and no permits have been filed either with the Conservation Commission or the Planning Board. At Tuesday’s meeting, the Conservation Commission took no votes on the matter, and is waiting to see if this project falls within its jurisdiction with regard to wetlands and environmental permitting.
Billy Chan, senior manager with Madison Energy Infrastructure, explained that the placement of this battery energy storage system has been reviewed by both Erving Industries and the Erving Fire Department, with input from the Planning Board and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation.
The initial proposal called for the battery to be placed adjacent to the mill. The second proposal called for it to be placed on the far eastern portion of the property. However, the eastern portion is not zoned for battery energy storage. The system could be placed across the road while still being on paper mill property, and it would have an underground distribution wire from the battery to the mill.
Chan explained that Madison Energy Infrastructure partners with schools and municipalities on solar and energy storage projects. The company owns 15 battery energy storage facilities in Massachusetts.
Residents and Conservation Commission members asked questions about the project, with some of the main issues centering on safety and environmental impact.
Commission member David Brule stated people sometimes get upset over proposals for battery energy storage, and residents will need some “reassurance” on what is ahead.
“Townspeople will want to know some really hard facts,” Brule said.
Another resident, Philip Johnson, said he lives within a quarter mile of the proposed project. He and his neighbors are concerned about the safety of these types of projects, especially for how fires at these storage facilities can be very difficult to put out.
The presentation explained that these systems are remotely monitored 24/7, and Madison Energy Infrastructure uses Tesla Megapack batteries that go through “rigorous testing standards” set by the National Fire Protection Association and other organizations. Chan said staff from the company are within an hour away, and if a fire were to break out in any of the batteries, there are personnel who can respond alongside the Fire Department.
Chan explained that engineering will be done to make sure runoff is managed and doesn’t go toward the Millers River. Brule said this project is also of interest to the Millers River Watershed Council, of which he is a board member.
“We want to work with the community and plan everything in a way to make sure that it’s designed so that everybody feels comfortable as a part of that process,” Chan said.
Subsequent meetings on the project will be held for the public to weigh in as the process continues, Brule said, noting the “safeguards” in place in permitting for projects like this.
