A new strategy has been unveiled with the aim of making the West Midlands a national leader in smart energy.
The long-term hope is that it will generate cheaper energy bills for residents and businesses and create thousands of new green jobs.
The new 'Regional Energy Strategy' outlines the powers and funding needed to introduce cutting-edge technology that will transform the way energy is generated, stored and used.
It also looks at the adoption of smart, innovative solutions to help residents and businesses become more energy resilient while speeding up the transition to net zero.
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Key ambitions include using storage to save excess energy during times of low demand, developing efficient heat networks for entire neighbourhoods and more small-scale renewable energy projects such as solar panels on roofs and battery storage hubs in locations of high demand.
The West Midlands is already part of a national pilot with the National Grid that aims to streamline planning for energy, transport and development.
A training and upskilling programme will be created with industry leaders to make sure local people have the practical skills and technical knowledge needed to get jobs in the energy sector.
West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker said: "This strategy marks the start of a new era of cleaner, more resilient and cheaper energy supplies to help our residents and businesses keep their lights on and their homes warm.
"I want this to be a turning point from where our region's innovative spirit starts to power a future of affordable energy, cleaner air and greener transport - all while creating high-quality jobs for local people.
"I've committed £23 million for a cutting-edge gigafactory to create thousands of jobs that will pioneer smarter ways of generating and storing the energy we need to power our homes, businesses and vehicles."
Last month, Mayor Parker also announced £167 million of new devolved funding to launch a plan to bring thousands of decades-old council homes up to modern energy efficient standards.
