A TRIM for B.E.S.S. will Stop the Next VISTRA Disaster
How we can make industrial-scale energy storage safe.
Decarbonization 2045 and the Race to Mitigate the B.E.S.S. Thermal Runaway Threat
My family and community have suffered because of the Vistra Moss Landing B.E.S.S. Fire Disaster. In response, I co-founded Never Again Moss Landing, a community organization devoted to ensuring that these thermal runaway events are prevented so that other communities do not share our experience. I have sought to discover why it happened and how it happened. I have devoted my time since trying to understand what has happened to our community and what it means to us. I have learned that illness is now present and will haunt many of us for years to come.
I have been asked by other people the world over, “What can be done? How do we ensure that another Moss Landing Never Again happens?” Since January 16th, 2025, the day that my family’s life was forever changed, I have tried to find a way to prevent this from ever again happening here or anywhere else.
I have spoken with countless experts, read scientific papers, and spoken with hundreds of residents and politicians and regulators. I have been exasperated by the inertia and the ineptitude and the dishonesty of powerful interests that are committed to this disastrous technology in pursuit of the critical goal of decarbonization.
I have learned of the corruption and greed inherent in the “Green Energy” industry and the lies behind the veil of environmental protection. And I have come to realize that these industrial B.E.S.S. installations will not be stopped. They will continue to be built and operated by an industry that is motivated to maximize its profit at the potential expense of human and environmental health and safety. I have learned that Vistra, the Moss Landing B.E.S.S. owner/operator is the largest electric power generator and a leading emitter of greenhouse gas and air pollution in the United States.
Our government has turned to gigantic corporations to bankroll the goal of complete decarbonization by 2045. Our regulators have allowed industry to install and operate incredibly dangerous technology with almost no meaningful oversight of the operation of these giant industrial facilities. As a result, this industry has been corrupted by -- and is corrupting -- the political commitment to decarbonization at all costs. This can change. This needs to change.
The risks of squeezing in every last drop of juice the BESS operator can collect.
An example of how corruption breeds can be seen in the management of the charge and discharge of the batteries in these B.E.S.S. facilities. Battery degradation and age can be tracked by its State of Health (SoH), which can be a measure of battery wear and tear. Once batteries degrade, they can pose heat and fire safety risks. To avoid rapid degradation, manufacturers typically warrant that these batteries must be charged and discharged at levels below 100% of capacity, leaving a buffer to avoid over-charging or too deep a discharge that can add extra heat to the battery and degrade it over time.
To maximize battery lifespan, large-scale BESS facilities often operate within a narrower State of Charge (SoC) window (e.g., 10% to 90%, rather than 0% to 100%) to avoid the extreme ends of charge, which are more stressful for lithium-ion batteries. The precise window would be determined by the battery manufacturer and operator’s operational strategy, balancing performance with longevity. If these parameters are incorrectly set or managed, a disaster such as Vistra’s can result.
Over time, exceeding these parameters damages battery parts, which can cause overheating or short circuits that subsequently cause the release of toxic gases, hot spot formation, and potential thermal runaway in the batteries. At industrial scale, thermal runaway can occur relatively early in the battery’s projected lifespan. While we do not yet know the cause of the Vistra disaster, their B.E.S.S. was supposed to last 20 years. It burned in less than five.
The general characteristics of NMC batteries are known (high energy density), specific charging level specifications (e.g., precise voltage ranges for charging, recommended SoC limits for optimal longevity or safety) for the industrial batteries such as LG’s that failed at Moss Landing are typically proprietary information held by manufacturer and the facility operator (in this case, Vistra Corp). These specifications are crucial for the Battery Management System (BMS) to operate the batteries safely and efficiently. They are usually found in detailed technical documentation provided by LG and other battery manufacturers to their clients and not generally released to the public. Industrial battery systems like those at Moss Landing are designed for high power throughput. While exact Charging/Discharging Limits (C-rates) aren't publicly specified, they should be carefully controlled by the BMS to prevent overcharging/overdischarging and to manage thermal stress. Sustained high C-rates (e.g., above 1C for charging or discharging) can accelerate degradation in NMC cells. These BMS parameters can be subtly modified by the plant operator. Exceeding these limits to meet grid demand also can generate enormous additional profits for the B.E.S.S. facility plant operator. Currently, there is no regulatory oversight of the C-rates. The dangerous distractions of Lithium Ion.
Many things can and should be done to prevent another B.E.S.S. disaster. The scale of industrial B.E.S.S. does not matter. Any battery, regardless of chemistry, can suffer from internal shorts due to manufacturing defects, dendrite growth, or mechanical damage. These can lead to localized heating and potentially thermal runaway. Whether 100 or 100,000 people are impacted when these storage facilities fail, they poison the surrounding community and environment. Lithium-ion such as the LG nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) batteries used at the Vistra facility as well as newer Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) batteries all can pose risks of thermal runaway. Assertions that LFP batteries are "inherently safe" from fires is an over-simplification. While their chemical stability is superior, meaning they are less likely to spontaneously enter thermal runaway under typical stress, they are still lithium-ion batteries and thus still contain flammable electrolytes and can experience failures leading to fire. LFP batteries are also more likely to offgas and pose different first responder risks.
There is enormous profit in buying cheap energy by day off consumers’ rooftops and selling it back to the same consumers at night for a much greater price. Each additional unit stored by the corporations is pure profit. Why would a company utilize less than its full installed battery capacity if it found a way to collect and sell a greater percentage of storage capacity?
Current regulations allow industry to overutilize their energy storage batteries systems by up to 20% variance without penalty. That extra 20% is pure, guaranteed profit. However, overutilization leads to the increasing risk of catastrophic thermal runaway. The balancing of risk and reward has been left to private corporations and the results are now apparent.
The SoC and SOH tracking data is maintained and privately held by the corporations themselves. Regulators and the public do not have direct real-time access to that data. It is time for this to end.
The pressing question now is: What can be done to prevent the next disaster?
One simple change can and should immediately be enacted to reduce the probability of catastrophic thermal runaway events. State authorities can and must implement an industry-wide requirement for Transparent, Real-time Independent Monitoring (TRIM) that tracks the charge and discharge of the battery cells at every B.E.S.S. operating in California. This change includes:
1. All raw data is transmitted and tracked by an independent 3rd party. This can be accomplished using AI to receive, monitor, filter, catalogue, categorize, interpret, post, and transmit all data from every facility.
2. All raw data is posted online in real time at a B.E.S.S. tracking AI app.
3. The app allows the public to find all B.E.S.S. facilities by location with real-time SOH and SOC data.
4. The app provides instructions on how to interpret and measure the data.
5. The app allows anyone to query AI whether the SOC or SOC parameters are being exceeded.
6. AI is used to analyze and quantify the SOH/SOC in real time, alerting authorities and the operator if overutilization is occurring.
Under an AI-managed open-source TRIM approach, the inherent risks of profit-seeking by industry will be mitigated. B.E.S.S. operating efficiency will improve through transparency that by design reduces the risk of infrastructure destruction. Through transparency, public safety as well as grid reliability will be enhanced.
While the exact numbers for industrial scale batteries aren't public, the general principles for large-scale BESS charging apply: controlled C-rates, adherence to manufacturer-specified voltage windows, and often operating within a constrained SoC range to extend battery life. The "TRIM" framework would track and provide public oversight of these critical parameters. This is required now that the inherent risks of these facilities has been revealed through the Vistra Moss Landing disaster.
This safety through transparency regulation will reduce the potential for thermal runaway events, not just in future installations, but also in those currently in operation. Any steps taken to reduce potential SoH degradation will immediately reduce risks at all facilities. Using AI to monitor corporate data that is already being collected will increase system reliability. This solution only represents a change to how and where the data is analyzed, utilized, and applied. This simple and efficient step reduces the extraordinary risk of thermal runaway and toxic environmental dispersion.
The compounding benefits for California state authorities:
· Enhanced Safety: Proactive identification of unsafe operating conditions and potential thermal events.
· Improved Grid Reliability: Better understanding of BESS performance and potential limitations.
· Loss Prevention: Ensures BESS assets are operated within their design limits, protecting investments and guaranteeing long-term functionality.
· Data-Driven Policy Making: Granular, real-time data provides valuable insights for refining regulations and incentives.
· Public Trust and community acceptance of BESS facilities: Transparent monitoring builds public confidence in large-scale energy storage deployments. Public acceptance of BESS projects will be crucial for California to meet in decarbonization goals and that starts with these facilities being good neighbors.
States must reassert their responsibility for public health, safety and welfare while continuing to pursue decarbonization. Implementing the TRIM framework would be a groundbreaking step, positioning California as a leader in safe, transparent, and intelligent energy grid management while continuing the critical march toward decarbonization.
© 2025 Brian Roeder
© BeeOak Associates LLC
