Skip to content

CONTACT A TRANE EXPERT

Find Your Trane Rep

Thermal Energy Storage for Chiller Plants

Thermal Energy Storage

Modernize your building's thermal management with Thermal Energy Storage. Reduce peak demand, lower energy costs, and support renewable energy usage.

Talk to a Thermal Energy Storage Expert
Thermal Battery Cooling System

Both new and existing buildings need more affordable, flexible ways to heat and cool based on energy availability. The answer is Thermal Energy Storage—which acts like a battery in a heating and cooling chiller plant to help improve energy, cost and carbon efficiency. Besides offering a great ROI, adding thermal energy storage is highly affordable thanks to recent tax incentives.

Trane is your personal thermal energy storage provider, combining leading technology, controls knowledge and systems expertise based on your unique building circumstances. Your local team can collaboratively guide you through a custom, seamless implementation based on your unique goals.  

Awards & Recognition

Thermal Battery Storage-Source
Heat Pump System

2023 Vision Awards Winner, facilitiesnet.

BuildingGreen Top 10 Product of 2024
FaciltiesNet Vision Award

Why Choose Trane Thermal Energy Storage?

Through years of research and thousands of installations, Trane has identified water as a very effective material for storing thermal energy for later use. This makes thermal energy storage an optimal means for a chiller plant to collect, store, recover and discharge heating and cooling energy. That’s just the start of what makes it such a powerful solution.

Inflation Reduction Act Incentives

For the first time in its 40-year existence, thermal energy storage now qualifies for federal incentives. Thanks to the $370+ billion Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022, thermal energy storage system costs may be reduced by up to 50%. Between the IRA’s tax credits, deductions, rebates and more, a thermal energy storage system may cost significantly less than a conventional system.

  • Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, Building in Washington DC

    Tax exempt organizations such as schools and local governments may now get payments direct from the IRS.

  • Typical American Elementary School

    Engineers may be tax incentive recipients for projects involving tax-exempt organizations like schools and federal buildings

  • Batteries in array

    One Trane thermal energy storage tank offers the same amount of energy as 40,000 AA batteries but with water as the storage material

  • Abstract of world network, internet and global connection concept

    Trane thermal energy storage is proven and reliable, with over 1 GW of peak power reduction in over 4,000 installations worldwide

  • CALMAC IceBank Tank Internal Illustration

    Trane thermal energy storage has an expected 40-year lifespan

  • Florida Thermal Battery System

    Trane thermal energy storage is modular, easy to integrate and scalable

BENEFITS

Resolve Your Energy Needs, Reach Your Building Goals

Thermal energy storage is a reliable, cost-effective solution to help reduce electricity costs when it’s most expensive and unlocking many other benefits.

For Building Owners & Operators

Helps reduce energy costs while reaching sustainability goals

Read Our Guide

Comprehensive Benefits

  • check mark

    Energy & Operating Costs

    • Consume energy at the most cost-effective times of the day

    • Recapture waste energy when loads don’t balance

  • tc-icon-heating-outline-blue-100.png

    Carbon Emission & Sustainability Goals

    • Increase renewable usage by up to 50%*.

    • Replace fossil fuel boilers with a low-carbon

  • tc-icon-energy-outline-blue-100.png

    Grid and Building Resiliency

    • Have greater protection against grid outages

    • Participate in grid capacity and demand limit revenue programs

  • tc-icon-reduced-risk-outline-blue-100.png

    Installation Costs

    • Avoid electrical infrastructure upgrades. 

    • Qualifies for federal incentives and utility rebates

*ASHRAE RP-1607. 2018

Downloads

Exclusive Trane Content

Dig deeper into how Trane’s thermal energy storage can move the needle on your needed outcomes. 

Our Approach

Realize the Potential of Thermal Energy Storage in Your Facility

Thermal energy storage is more effective when controlled and integrated properly. Trane’s data-backed, consultative approach caters to your exact heating and cooling needs and operational requirements. Compared to other providers, we provide a complete solution with building-level controls and digital services.

  • Assess

    Now is the time to reassess your building space and collaboratively plan around your business goals given changing regulatory drivers and new federal incentives.

  • Mitigate

    Local experts best practices in thermal energy storage system design that are specific to your application and goals and then implement solutions.

  • Manage

    Localized support and 24/7 remote connectivity deliver proactive maintenance and ongoing optimization, ensuring your uptime and efficiency long after installation.

Our Solutions

Our Thermal Energy Storage Offerings

Trane’s easy-to-integrate thermal storage tanks—compatible with complete system design guidance, control sequences and points list with operation dashboards—are designed to work reliably. Easy-to-manage pre-packaged with operator dashboards give complete control over system performance. 

Visit Trane Design Assist

Made with durable polyethylene, yours can be implemented into a new building or retrofitted when replacing a chiller plant. All you need is space for the tanks, which can go virtually anywhere: inside, outside, on a roof, in a parking garage, even buried.

Thermal Energy Storage Tanks

CALMAC® Energy Storage Tank Model C

These versatile second-generation tanks are ideal for larger commercial and institutional buildings, making siting and installation easy. Designed with a 20% smaller footprint requirement, Model C tanks can be bolted together to eliminate external piping and reduce installation time and costs.

CALMAC® Energy Storage - Model A Tanks

Ideal for small installations since their introduction in 1979, our Classic Model A tank has been upgraded to the 100% welded PE internal heat exchanger design. They’re designed for individual connection with distribution piping.

Integrated Thermal Energy Storage Systems

Thermal Battery Storage Systems

Trane Thermal Battery™ systems are premier HVAC plants that provide a distributed resource for our changing grid. Their ability to store thermal energy enables your building to reliably modify HVAC operations to optimize for carbon reduction or energy cost savings.

Glycol® Management System

A Glycol Management System (GMS) makes solution mixing easy by maintaining the proper volume of coolant in a building's circulating loop.

CALMAC® Plate Heat Exchanger

Plate Heat Exchangers are ideal for avoiding cross-contamination in confined spaces. 

Thermal Energy Storage and Electricity Storage

All types of energy storage are needed for a low-carbon future, and each technology has its own best use case. For maximum efficiency and cost-effectiveness, it’s important to store energy in the same form in which it will be consumed. That means using electrochemical storage to meet electric loads and thermal energy storage for thermal loads.

Electric storage is essential for powering elevators, lighting and much more. However, when it comes to cooling or heating, thermal energy storage keeps the energy in the form it's needed in, boosting efficiency tremendously compared to other forms of electricity.

 

Compared to electricity storage, thermal energy storage also offers:

  • tc-icon-trees-planted-1-outline-blue-100.png

    ⅓ of the upfront costs

  • tc-icon-heat-recovery-outline-blue-100.png

    A longer discharge duration

  • tc-icon-cloud-outline-blue-100.png

    A longer lifespan

  • tc-icon-trees-planted-2-outline-blue-100.png

    Outdoor placement options

Realizing the Potential of Thermal Energy Storage in Your Facility

Case Studies & Success Stories

Explore a range of commercial buildings that have benefited from Trane’s thermal energy storage solutions. Trane utilizes thermal energy storage at many of its current facilities.

Government & Education

Commercial & Industrial

  • Thermal Battery™ System expected to cut Shooting Star Casino annual energy costs by up to 35 percent

    Shooting Star Casino

    Thermal Battery™ System Expected to Cut Shooting Star Casino Annual Energy Costs by up to 35 Percent

  • 11_Madison_Ave_Thumbnail_992x600px_v01.jpg

    11 Madison Avenue

    Decreased 1.4 million pounds of annual carbon dioxide emissions and created more than $730,000 in annual energy and operating cost savings.

  • Nebraska_Furniture_Mart_960x360.jpg

    Nebraska Furniture Mart

    Lowered facility utility rates and eliminated 1.6 megawatts of electricity from the afternoon grid, helping avoid area brownouts

  • Turnkey project is saving $765,000 in annual operating expenses, generating a 25 percent internal rate of return

    TIAA-CREF

    Saved $765,000 in annual operating expenses, generating a 25% internal rate of return and avoiding 6.1 million pounds of carbon dioxide emissions

  • California State Lottery Headquarters

    California State Lottery Headquarters

    Reduced cooling costs during peak hours by 21% during both winters and summers, helping achieve LEED Gold® certification.

Contact Us for Expert Guidance

May 20, 2025

Trane does not provide tax, legal, or accounting advice. This material is for informational purposes only and it should not be relied on for tax, legal, or accounting advice. Tax law is subject to continual change. All decisions are your responsibility, and you should consult your own tax, legal, and accounting advisors. Trane disclaims any responsibility for actions taken on the material presented.