by Martin LaMonica

Lithium ion batteries aren't just for your laptop anymore. A group of truck-size battery banks are delivering quick bursts of power to the electricity grid in upstate New York.

AES Energy Storage, a subsidiary of power generation company AES, today said that the first 8 megawatts of a planned 20-megawatt battery grid storage system are now online in Johnson City, N.Y. The full project is expected to be completed later this year.

The network of batteries is designed to keep an even balance between energy supply and demand in that portion of the New York grid. The batteries will store energy and, based on a signal from grid operators, supply power for a few seconds as needed.

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