Everybody agrees that storage is turning into big business, and soon, but exactly how big and how soon? According to a report released in Nov 2018 by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) the global energy-storage market will surge to a cumulative 942 GW by 2040 requiring a hefty investment of $620 billion. Sharply falling battery costs is a key driver of the projected boom, as is the pressing need to smooth out the output of renewable generation. BNEF says the capital cost of utility-scale lithium-ion storage systems is likely to fall another 52% by 2030.

But like much else in electricity markets these days, cost isn’t the only or even the main driver of future demand growth – it is the mandatory rise of renewables. Governments the world over are requiring ever higher percentages of renewables while pushing for more electric vehicles (EVs) and solar PVs.

According to BNEF’s Yayoi Sekine, “Costs have come down faster than we expected. … Batteries are going to permeate our lives.”

The implications of cheaper batteries are far-reaching, upending multiple industries and helping spur technologies necessary to help fight climate change. Batteries will power the EVs while also boosting the value of solar and wind power, both inherently variable resources.

BNEF highlights two important storage markets:

China, which is investing in massive battery manufacturing capacity; and
California, which has a mandatory 100% renewable electricity target for 2045 as well as a number of other measures such as storage capacity.
In places like California and Hawaii, both moving towards a 100% renewable future by 2045, massive new storage capacity will undoubtedly be required along with other means of shifting midday’s sun to evening hours or for cloudy days. Wind, the other major renewable contender, is equally variable.

WESTBOROUGH, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–NEC Energy Solutions announced today the completion of an energy storage system for Consumers Energy.

The NEC energy storage solution, located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, includes two independent 280kW/340kWh DSS® energy storage systems and NEC’s proprietary AEROS® controls software. The energy storage system will enable Consumers Energy to investigate how energy storage can be used to avoid further system upgrades, smooth renewable energy production and support load/energy management. The storage system has been designed with the flexibility to increase the energy capacity to 1MWh or more.

The NEC energy storage system is located within Circuit West, a 13-block district on Grand Rapids’ west side where Consumers Energy is installing innovative electricity generation and distribution in a neighborhood with new, energy-efficient building construction.

“Today, there is very little storage on the grid, so electricity is generated just moments before you use it,” said Garrick Rochow, Consumers Energy’s senior vice president of operations. “With large batteries like NEC’s energy storage solution, we will make our grid more efficient, effective and sustainable. It’s a critical part of Michigan’s energy future and it’s happening here at Circuit West.”

“As the market for energy storage continues to grow, more customers are entering the market to test the viability of energy storage in their own applications. We know the many benefits of energy storage having been in the business for more than 12 years but it’s also common for customers new to storage to initially take a pilot approach,” said Steve Fludder, CEO for NEC Energy Solutions. “We are happy to be working with Consumers Energy on test projects like this and we anticipate this will lead to greater deployment of valuable storage across their service territory.”

The DSS® platform is scalable from 85kWh to 600kWh of energy storage capacity and offers from 100kW up to 710kW of power capability. As a standardized, UL safety-certified, AC-ready system including power conversion system, the DSS® product is preconfigured in outdoor-rated enclosures, compliant with all relevant regulatory and environmental requirements and is backed by up to a 10 year product warranty.

Energy democracy includes a vision of individual empowerment, while existing within and being a contributing member of our broader human society. Customer-sited solar electricity and energy storage exactly fits into this philosophy.

The California Solar and Energy Storage Association (CALSSA) released a white paper, Barriers to Maximizing the Value of Behind-the-Meter Distributed Energy Resources (14-page pdf), detailing legislative barriers that prevent customer-sited solar and storage from maximizing its potential as a grid resource. The document suggests solar+storage can provide numerous values to the electric grid – including energy, system capacity, local generation and distribution capacity, voltage support, and other ancillary services.

CALSSA discusses five main barriers in the document:

• Program Participation Exclusions in Utility Solicitations
• Prohibitions on Participating in Multiple Utility Programs
• Dual Participation Limits in Demand Response Programs
• Capacity Credit Limitations and Availability Requirements in Demand Response Programs
• Lack of Clarity in Demonstrating Incrementality vis-à-vis DER Adoption Forecasts

The document then focuses on specific pieces of legislation and procurement processes, and suggests refinements to those laws. For instance, regarding energy storage resources participating in multiple utility programs, CALSSA notes that Resolution E-4889 suggests that the California Public Utilities Commission supports that participation in another program, such as Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP), demand response, or net energy metering should not preclude participation in a distribution services solicitation, as long as the bidder can show that the system will be operated in a way that provides an incremental service. Other laws support this logic also, however, CALSSA notes that solicitations for local capacity continue to include categorical exclusions. CALSSA suggests The CPUC should clarify that the intent of Resolution E-4889 is to allow for participation in other programs and should explicitly extend this provision to cover new resources as well.