Grid-Enhancing Optimization with White Pine Renewables & PG&E

Background: A grid under pressure

California’s grid, like many across the U.S., is straining under aging infrastructure that can’t always keep up with how much electricity is being produced — or how much is needed.

In some areas, there’s too much electricity supply during the day, often when solar production is high, which overwhelms local infrastructure. In other places, it’s the opposite problem — there is not enough capacity to meet demand, especially during high-usage periods. Utilities often respond to these issues with traditional upgrades, like replacing transformers or building new lines, which can easily cost $10+ million and are often in short supply.

Energy storage systems offer a faster, more cost-effective solution. When placed in the right spots, they can charge off excess energy when there’s too much local production and discharge to send it back out when the grid needs support later. This is why Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) teamed up with White Pine Renewables to develop the Lakeview and Blackwells projects. They placed batteries at specific grid choke points to relieve strain in those moments when the power supply was too much – or too little.

However, siting the battery is only half the battle. Tyba’s optimization platform plays a critical role in ensuring each project operates exactly when and how it needs to — responding to PG&E’s commands when required, while maximizing participation in the CAISO market the rest of the time.

Challenge: Turning grid support into real value

At the Lakeview project, for example, the goal is to relieve pressure at a specific substation and distribution circuit. But grid stress doesn’t follow a predictable schedule. The battery might be needed at 2 p.m. one day and not at all the next. While PG&E’s innovative Distributed Energy Resource Management System (DERMS), “predicts when and where more electricity will be needed and where there are constraints,” that kind of uncertainty makes it hard to plan — and harder still to ensure the asset is generating consistent returns.

To be financially viable, the battery also has to participate in CAISO’s wholesale market. That means creating a daily operating plan that can shift in real time: ready to respond to PG&E’s dispatch instructions, but still able to earn revenue when the grid doesn’t need support.

White Pine needed an approach that could make the most of this new grid model.

“This wasn’t your typical battery project. We needed a partner who could build a real-time optimization strategy that respected PG&E’s operational limits while still delivering upside in the market. Tyba was the only platform that could make that complexity work.”

— Joe McLean, EVP of Technology and Business Development, White Pine Renewables

Solution: Dynamic energy storage optimization

White Pine partnered with Tyba to develop a tailored optimization approach — one designed specifically for the realities of this kind of project that needed to:

Account for the possibility of charge/discharge commands from PG&E when developing a daily operating plan
Maximize wholesale market revenue
Factor in restrictions on when the battery could charge or discharge
Maintain the agility to respond to commands from PG&E in real time

Rather than trying to reshape the project to fit existing software constraints, Tyba built the functionality to integrate utility operating limits directly into daily bid and dispatch strategies. The platform ensures the battery is available when PG&E needs it, while maximizing CAISO market participation the rest of the time.

This flexibility was essential. Tyba’s ability to co-optimize across utility commands and wholesale opportunities is what made the Lakeview and Blackwells projects create positive value for both PG&E and the developer, both technically and financially. In addition to boosting returns for White Pine, the participation in CAISO markets reduces the cost to PG&E, and the savings get passed along to electric customers.

“This kind of project is what Tyba was built to support as batteries add value at all scales of the grid and can deliver multiple services based on what’s most needed in each moment. Our autopilot system manages this versatility, enabling dual participation in CAISO markets and meeting PG&E’s local system needs — all while making sure the project delivers the return profile White Pine is targeting.”

— Michael Baker, Co-Founder and CEO, Tyba

Results: A first-of-its-kind storage project

With Tyba’s optimization in place, both projects are delivering on their dual mission: supporting the grid and generating strong returns.

Grid relief:

Lakeview: By discharging strategically on command, the battery has helped PG&E avoid upgrading a planned overloaded distribution line — avoiding nearly $10 million of capital investment.
Blackwells: Sited near a small substation overwhelmed by solar exports, the battery follows strict midday discharge restrictions and is poised to charge when required to reduce load, avoiding yet another $10M+ capital investment.

Financial viability:

Project returns: As much as 50% of project revenue is generated through wholesale market participation — enabled by Tyba’s constraint-aware bidding strategies.
Customer value: These projects defer infrastructure upgrades, the costs of which ultimately get passed on to customers.

Innovative new model:

Flexible interconnection: PG&E’s collaboration with White Pine also broke new ground with the first-ever Flexible Interconnection Agreement. Instead of designing for worst-case demand, this structure provides dynamic operating constraints based on real-time conditions.

Path to scale: Tyba and White Pine continue to build out new functionality to manage these unique projects more effectively — laying the foundation for a scalable model that can be replicated across California and other grid constrained areas.

By combining strategic siting, utility collaboration, and Tyba’s flexible optimization, the Lakeview and Blackwells projects show what’s possible when storage is treated as a grid solution—not just a market asset. It’s a model that delivers real reliability benefits, strong financial performance, and long-term value for both utilities and customers — and one that’s ready to scale.