Lydian Switches On 150-MW, 600-MWh Faraday Battery in Utah

• Lydian Energy's 150-MW / 600-MWh Faraday battery in Utah County has reached commercial operation after starting up on Sept. 18.
• The four-hour LFP system serves PacifiCorp under a Schedule 34 contract supporting Meta's Eagle Mountain data center.
• A second battery of up to 375 MW / 1,500 MWh at the site targets service in late 2028.

Lydian Energy's Faraday battery in Utah County, Utah, has reached commercial operation, adding 150 MW / 600 MWh of battery storage next to the 525-MW Faraday solar plant. The four-hour system began operating on Sept. 18, the company said in a statement on Nov. 10.

The standalone lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery delivers its 600 MWh of contracted capacity to PacifiCorp under a long-term energy storage agreement. It is contracted through Schedule 34 in support of Meta's Eagle Mountain data center. That Rocky Mountain Power tariff lets the utility buy clean energy on behalf of Utah customers with a peak load of at least 5,000 kW. Lydian did not name the battery supplier, the builder or the project cost.

The battery sits on roughly eight acres and shares the solar plant's substation and grid connection. US operators added 8.3 GW of battery capacity in the first half of 2026, bringing the national fleet to nearly 52 GW, according to the EIA. They planned another 14 GW for the second half.

The battery in numbers

• 150 MW / 600 MWh of four-hour LFP storage, operating since Sept. 18, 2026.
• 10 months, approximately, from mobilization to commercial operation, according to Lydian.
• 75 MWh per acre, from 600 MWh on a site of about eight acres (list.solar calculation).
• 1.1% of the 14 GW of US battery capacity operators planned to add in the second half of 2026 (list.solar calculation).
• $9 million, approximately, in property tax expected over the project's life.
• 525 MW / 2,100 MWh of storage at the site if the second phase is built, matching the solar plant's 525 MW (list.solar calculation).

In February, Lydian announced $689 million in financing from CIBC and MUFG for Faraday and two solar projects in New Mexico and Texas. That release listed Faraday Phase 1 at 150 MW / 733 MWh. The November statement gives 600 MWh and does not explain the difference. The Excelsior Energy Capital-backed company now reports a 6.0-GW portfolio, up from 4.4 GW in February.

"When a wildfire threatened the area in June, our team put safety first while keeping the project on track," Kim Smith, Lydian's chief operating officer, said.

Lydian is also developing Faraday BESS 2 at the same site. It would add up to 375 MW / 1,500 MWh of storage, with a targeted in-service date in the fourth quarter of 2028.