1. A. Terms Defined.

   1. (1) “Administrator” means an approved electric company, state agency, or Commission approved entity responsible for the enrollment in and general administration of an initiative under the Maryland Energy Storage Program.
   2. (2) “Affected community” means the residential individuals, organizations, and other entities located within 1 mile of the proposed location of an energy storage device.
   3. (3) “Applicant” means an energy storage device owner that submits an application to an administrator to enroll in an initiative in the Maryland Energy Storage Program or to construct a front-of-the-meter energy storage device.
   4. (4) “Behind-the-meter energy storage device” means an energy storage device that is installed on the customer side of an electric company meter and serves a particular electric company customer electric load.
   5. (5) “Construction” has the meaning stated in Public Utilities Article, §7-207(a)(3), Annotated Code of Maryland.
   6. (6) “Cost-effective” means having projected benefits that are greater than projected costs while considering other factors as determined by the Commission.
   7. (7) “Delivery year” has the meaning stated in Public Utilities Article, §7-216.1, Annotated Code of Maryland and is a planning period consisting of the 12 months beginning June 1 and extending through May 31 of the following year.
   8. (8) “Deployment incentive mechanism” means an incentive or rebate provided by an administrator to accelerate the deployment of cost-effective energy storage devices providing grid services as part of the Maryland Energy Storage Program and is not a payment for performance or specific operations.
   9. (9) “Distributed energy resource” has the meaning stated in COMAR 20.50.09.02.
   10. (10) “Electric company” has the meaning stated in Public Utilities Article, §1-101, Annotated Code of Maryland.
   11. (11) “Energy storage device” has the meaning stated in Public Utilities Article, §7-216, Annotated Code of Maryland and may be classified by market segment for the purposes of registration in the Maryland Energy Storage Program or enrollment in Administrator Initiatives.
   12. (12) “Enrollment” means the acceptance by an administrator of an application of an energy storage device in an initiative for a delivery year and occurs in parallel with the PJM Interconnection LLC or the electric company’s interconnection process.

   13. (13) “Front-of-the-meter energy storage device” means an energy storage device where there is no load on the customer side of the meter beyond loads required to operate the energy storage device and includes:

       1. (a) A separate electrical isolation device to prevent the flow of electricity when required for operation or maintenance;
       2. (b) A separate energy measurement meter;
       3. (c) At least one inverter; and
       4. (d) The ability to be operated in an independent manner from other energy storage devices.
   14. (14) “Generating station” has the meaning stated in COMAR 20.79.01.02.
   15. (15) “Grid services” means the dispatch and control of an energy storage device to provide service to the electric company’s electric grid pursuant to an electric company tariff, service contract between the electric company and the owner of a registered energy storage device, or providing transmission-level grid services by participating in PJM Interconnection LLC wholesale markets.
   16. (16) “Grid services mechanism” means “pay-for-performance” compensation from an electric company to owners of energy storage devices registered in the Maryland Energy Storage Program that provide grid services to the electric system.
   17. (17) “Initiative” means an administrator’s Commission-approved structure in which energy storage devices can enroll that offers a mechanism targeted at a specific market segment.
   18. (18) “Long-duration energy storage system (LDES)” means an energy storage device capable of continuously discharging electricity at its full rated capacity for 10 hours or longer but less than 24 hours.
   19. (19) “Market segment” means the categorization of energy storage devices in the Maryland Energy Storage Program as front-of-the-meter electric transmission, front-of-the meter electric distribution, or behind-the-meter electric distribution.
   20. (20) “Maryland energy storage program” means the initiatives and registrations that the Commission established to meet State energy storage targets pursuant to Public Utilities Article, §7-216.1, Annotated Code of Maryland.
   21. (21) “Mechanism” means a procurement mechanism, a grid services mechanism, or a deployment incentive mechanism and may be implemented as a tariff, grant, rebate, or a contract.
   22. (22) “Microgrid” means a network that can consist of interconnected loads, distributed energy resources, and energy storage devices within clearly defined electrical boundaries that acts as a single controllable network with respect to the electric system and that can be disconnected from the electric distribution or transmission system to operate independently.
   23. (23) “Multi-day energy storage (Multi-day ES)” means an energy storage device capable of continuously discharging electricity at its full rated capacity for 24 hours or longer.
   24. (24) “Notice to affected community” means by advertisement in a newspaper of general circulation in the county or municipal corporation affected by the application and on two types of social media platforms.
   25. (25) “Overburdened community” has the same meaning as defined in Environment Article, §1–701, Annotated Code of Maryland.

   26. (26) “Ownership and operations model” means the role that third-parties and electric companies play in owning and operating energy storage devices and may include, but are not limited to:

       1. (a) A third-party ownership and operations model;
       2. (b) An electric company ownership and operations model;
       3. (c) An electric company owned and third party-operated model;
       4. (d) A third-party owned and electric company operated model; and
       5. (e) An electric company ownership and leaseback model.
   27. (27) “Parcel” means a lot or group of lots devoted to a particular use including open spaces required or used in connection with that particular use.
   28. (28) “Pre-existing energy storage device” means an energy storage device that is in-service or under construction prior to the effective date of this chapter.
   29. (29) “Procurement mechanism” means a competitive solicitation by an administrator for energy storage devices providing grid services or a contract established by an administrator for grid services from energy storage devices.
   30. (30) “Registrant” means the person that obtains registration of an energy storage device in the Maryland Energy Storage Program.
   31. (31) “Registration” means the counting of an energy storage device in the Maryland Energy Storage Program energy storage device targets stated in Public Utilities Article, §7-216.1, Annotated Code of Maryland as of the date it is in-service.
   32. (32) “Renewable on-site generating system” has the meaning stated in Public Utilities Article, §7-1001(i), Annotated Code of Maryland.
   33. (33) “Short-duration energy storage (SDES)” means an energy storage device capable of continuously discharging electricity at its full rated capacity for less than 10 hours.
   34. (34) “Technology type” means all types of electric storage device technologies, regardless of their size, storage medium, or operational purpose as classified in Public Utilities Article, §7-216, Annotated Code of Maryland.
   35. (35) “Unclassified technology type” means a technology that is not stated in Public Utilities Article, §7-216, Annotated Code of Maryland.
   36. (36) “Underserved community” has the same meaning as defined in Environment Article, §1–701, Annotated Code of Maryland.
   37. (37) “Virtual power plant” means a collection of distributed energy resources, potentially including energy storage devices, that can provide grid services when aggregated together and coordinated with grid operations.

Authority: Public Utilities Article, §§1-101, 2-113, 2-121, 7-207, 7-216, 7-216.1, 7-219, 7–1001, and 7-1005, Annotated Code of Maryland

Effective date: March 30, 2026 (52:6 Md. R. 292)