Rapidly changing energy mixes and increasing volatility in load profiles are challenging grid operators to deliver reliable and secure electricity. These factors are also encouraging demand for long-duration or bulk energy storage, known as energy storage on the grid (ESG). According to a recent report from Pike Research, a part of Navigant’s Energy Practice, the market for ESG will expand rapidly in the coming decade: nearly 56 gigawatts of ESG will be installed from 2012 to 2022, the study concludes.
“Newer and emerging energy storage technologies – such as next-generation compressed air energy storage and pumped storage, as well as advanced batteries – are changing the energy storage space with innovations in efficiency, footprint, materials science, and system flexibility,” says senior research analyst Anissa Dehamna. “These innovations will help enable grid operators to optimize grid assets, defer transmission and distribution upgrades, and integrate renewable energy sources.”
Presently, it is still difficult for many energy storage vendors to make a business case for their technologies based on a single application. To that end, some vendors are layering applications, according to the report. Instead of focusing on a single application, as with traditional energy storage installations, they are delivering solutions for several issues with a single installation. The industry is at a key point, as vendors attempt to fully commercialize technology and develop business cases that highlight total value, rather than simply applications.
