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There are very few areas suitable for pumped energy storage. It requires specific topology and geology.

I like your point about proper scientific units for headlines, and disagree with pumped energy storage. If you aren't gifted with appropriate geology, it really isn't nearly as effective an option, is it? Also, response time is a lot different. There is enough room for both it would seem.

What is PES? I only can get results for Power & Energy Society, which seems tangentially but not meaningfully related

I think it means Pumped Energy Storage

I was wondering if he was suggesting we roll trains up hills with excess power and use regenerative braking or something like this, I hope he will respond

No need for a hill! You can dig a deep hole, and fill it with concrete weights.

100 MW for 10 ms is 28 Wh.

What is PES?

Pumped Energy Storage (or rarely: Potential Energy Storage).

Aka pumped hydro.

In Switzerland, and maybe in, say, Appalachia, it's an obvious thing to do.

But if your land lacks serious mountainous features, like much of Texas, it becomes impractical. It's also seriously more capital-intensive: you need to pour like a million tons of concrete.