Could Transformer-level Batteries Shield the Grid from the Next Super Storm?

This is a guest post by Robert Fares, a graduate student at The University of Texas at Austin researching the benefits of grid energy storage as part of Pecan Street Inc.'s ongoing smart grid demonstration project . Robert is contributing a series of guest posts discussing grid storage technologies, and how storage could benefit the electric grid. You can read the first and second posts in his series here and here . During the last days of October 2012, what has become colloquially known as Super Storm Sandy plowed into the eastern United States. The storm was one of the most damaging in U.S. history, causing over 250 fatalities and more than $65 billion in damage. Our fragile electric grid exacerbated the impact of the storm. High-speed winds tore down power lines and flooding damaged electric substations, causing power failures in seventeen states and leaving over one million electric customers without power. [More]