After entering 2020 buoyed by aggressive growth forecasts, U.S. energy storage developers now face widespread project delays as a result of disruptions caused by the global coronavirus pandemic. Pacific Gas and Electric Co.'s 182.5-MW Tesla Moss Landing Battery Energy Storage Project (Elkhorn), for instance, a marquee project planned near the shores of California's Monterey Bay, was on track to start construction in late March. That will not happen now as Pacific Gas and Electric, or PG&E, has postponed groundbreaking "until after the stay-at-home order is lifted," according to Paul Doherty, a spokesperson for the utility. Gov. Gavin Newsom issued the statewide order March 19 without naming a specific end date. In the meantime, the PG&E Corp. subsidiary is prioritizing "critical and essential safety and maintenance work" on its electric and natural gas system, Doherty said. The utility still hopes to have the system, which uses lithium-ion batteries from Tesla Inc., "energized by the end of 2020 and fully operational in the first quarter of 2021," Doherty said. But that depends on when Newsom deems it safe for Californians to resume their normal daily lives.
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