PREB seeks explanations for delays in accelerated storage program

The approved energy storage projects are part of LUMA Energy’s accelerated storage addition program, or ASAP.

By The Star Staff

The Puerto Rico Energy Bureau (PREB) on Thursday ordered the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) to explain within five days why it has not executed four energy storage projects already approved for a total 110 megawatts (MW) of battery capacity.

The projects are part of LUMA Energy’s accelerated storage addition program (ASAP).

On June 16, the PREB asked LUMA, the private operator of the island’s energy grid, to provide a detailed status report on all Phase 1 projects. On June 23, LUMA filed a document titled Motion in Compliance with Resolution and Order of June 16, 2025 and Request for Confidential Treatment. Through its June 23 motion, LUMA provided a status update on the four agreements approved by the PREB.

The PREB became aware that the projects were approved by PREPA and the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico; however, execution has not yet started, as it is pending confirmation that PREPA can proceed with execution with a letter of authorization from the Puerto Rico Public-Private Partnerships Authority.

In its proposal filed with the PREB on April 26, 2024, LUMA highlighted that Phase 1 projects could begin immediately, as they did not require network upgrades or interconnection costs, with some independent power producers claiming they could be commercial in under 12 months, the PREB said.

“As such, the execution of the referenced agreements should have already taken place, as implementation was contemplated for April 2025,” the PREB said in a July 23 resolution. “This is extremely concerning, [since] if those projects had been executed, the current generation challenges could have been avoided entirely and prevented the persistent reliance on loadshedding events, particularly considering that the outages involve [megawatt] capacity that would have been covered by the projects identified for execution under the Phase 1 ASAP Program, which total 110MW of BESS [battery energy storage system].”