Clean energy advocates say that the price of solar power has come down significantly in the last decade, which could play a big role in fighting climate change.
But there is still one big hurdle to clear.
Modern solar panels pretty much stop working once the sun goes down.
But in the Valley, that’s too soon, because people still need to cool their homes. One solution is to store some of that power in batteries.
Salt River Project recently announced a partnership with a company that specializes in battery storage systems.
Grant Smedley of SRP said the added storage could help the utility meet its clean energy goals.
“So battery storage will play a role in helping us to reduce our carbon emissions in the coming years," he said. "It will do that by helping us to store renewable energy that’s generated at various times throughout the day and to use it at the times when our customers need it the most.”
The utility says it will create two storage facilities, one in Gilbert and one in Avondale, that could produce enough energy to power more than 76,000 homes for four hours.