Massachusetts Invests $40 Million in On-Site Battery Storage to Enhance Grid Resiliency
By the microgrid Massachusetts seeks grid resiliency, but mainly through battery storage.
The state’s Department of Energy Resources last week awarded more than $40 million to 36 distributed energy projects supporting community and safety priorities. The grants are part of DER’s Advancing Massachusetts Power Energy Storage Grant Program.
“This is about lowering energy costs and keeping the lights on when communities need it most,” Gov. Maura Healey said in a statement. “These investments will help schools, affordable housing, community centers and other critical facilities stay powered during outages while strengthening our grid for the future. We’re also making sure first responders and local officials have the training and tools they need as more energy storage comes online across Massachusetts.”
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The statewide program will focus on using battery storage to be ready in the event of outages. For example, Acushnet Ford Middle School will have a 250-kW/1,728-kWh (1.73-MWh) battery system installed, while Springfield Water and Sewer will host a 2.5-MW/10-MWh battery storage system.
Other locations include apartment complexes, community centers, schools, public works and even a jail facility. All told, more than 13 MW of batteries will be installed.
Massachusetts Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rebecca Tepper noted that batteries supplied more electricity to the grid so far this year than in all of 2025—indicating the energy resource’s growth pattern both in New England and around the U.S. Utility-scale battery storage capacity has grown by an average rate of 70% annually in the U.S. over recent years, according to the federal Energy Information Administration.
Battery storage capacity is gaining new appreciation for its ability to handle voltage ride-through and transient load from AI computing as well as providing grid smoothing, balance and resiliency services.
“Communities need reliable power and the confidence that new energy technologies are being deployed safely,” Massachusetts Lt. Gov Kim Driscoll said in the government statement. “These grants will help cities and towns strengthen critical infrastructure, prepare first responders and local officials, and take advantage of storage technology that can save money and improve resilience.”
Total U.S. battery storage capacity surpassed 52 GW this summer and could reach 70 GW by early 2027, according to reports. Many of these installations are made in tandem with renewable energy and even gas-fired power generation both as part of microgrids and behind-the-meter for digital infrastructure.
Click here to see a list of all the Massachusetts sites granted under the Advancing Massachusetts Power Energy Storage Program
About the Author
Rod Walton, Microgrid Knowledge Managing EditorRod Walton, Microgrid Knowledge Managing Editor
Managing Editor
For Microgrid Knowledge editorial inquiries, please contact Managing Editor Rod Walton at [email protected].
I’ve spent the last 18 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist. I was an energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World before moving to business-to-business media at PennWell Publishing, which later became Clarion Events, where I covered the electric power industry. I joined Endeavor Business Media in November 2021 to help launch EnergyTech, one of the company’s newest media brands. I joined Microgrid Knowledge in July 2023.
I earned my Bachelors degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma. My career stops include the Moore American, Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, Wagoner Tribune and Tulsa World, all in Oklahoma . I have been married to Laura for the past 36-plus years and we have four children and one adorable granddaughter. We want the energy transition to make their lives better in the future.
Microgrid Knowledge and EnergyTech are focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids. The C&I sectors together account for close to 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.
Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.