California batteries missing out on revenue due to suboptimal bidding strategies, Gridmatic analysis finds

July 17, 2026

Gridmatic, a company specialising in AI-powered grid forecasting and battery optimisation, released its California Independent System Operator (CAISO) Storage Report on 24 June, an analysis of 30 energy storage systems in the market, and found that many operators are using static “set it and forget it” bidding approaches that fail to capture available revenue opportunities. Image: Gridmatic

Battery energy storage systems (BESS) operating in California’s grid left approximately US$98 million on the table due to suboptimal bidding strategies, according to a new analysis from Gridmatic.

Gridmatic, a company specialising in AI-powered grid forecasting and battery optimisation, released its California Independent System Operator (CAISO) Storage Report on 24 June, an analysis of 30 energy storage systems in the market, and found that many operators are using static “set it and forget it” bidding approaches that fail to capture available revenue opportunities.

The US$98 million estimate represents the potential additional revenue the 30 batteries in the study could have earned if they had achieved the same performance ratio as Gridmatic’s top-performing asset, the 100MW/400MWh Caballero BESS in San Luis Obispo County, from Fengate Asset Management and Alpha Omega Power (AOP).