General Compression, Inc has closed an initial round of funding for over $5 million.
The funds will be used to accelerate the development of General Compression’s dispatchable wind technology. According to Don Hodel, Chairman of wind developer Summit Power, and a founding shareholder of General Compression, “By enabling wind farms to store and sell power at peak hours, General Compression will dramatically improve the profitability and market potential of wind power.”
General Compression’s Dispatchable Wind Turbine System has three components: a compressed air wind turbine, a pipeline network that collects and stores compressed air, and a power plant of expanders and generators. By shifting the time when power is sold, the wind project can sell power on peak at a higher price, be more compatible with the needs of the grid, and become eligible for capacity payments. This solution will double the profitability of wind farms.
The turbine is powered by a new compressor. When the wind blows, lift is created on the turbine blades, spinning the compressor inside the nacelle. The compressor pumps air to over 100 atmospheres of pressure and sends the air down the tower into an underground network of high-pressure pipes.
The high-pressure pipeline network collects and stores 6-12 hours of energy. If the project is sited near a geologic feature such as a salt dome, aquifer, limestone cavern, or depleted gas field, energy storage times can exceed weeks and even months.
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