The traditional automotive industry had been reluctant to embrace the electricity revolution. But Porsche’s recent announcement that it would be doubling its investment in electric vehicles (EVs) to €6 billion (US$7.4 billion) by 2022 can be seen as a wakeup call. The battery vehicles are coming.
And Porsche is not the only one. Other automotive companies are on the same path and investment in EVs from the EU and US automotive industries totals about €90 billion in the next five years. There is no time left to hide.
In short, energy storage technology is set to revolutionise our society, EVs and beyond, with power companies among the most affected – whether they like it or not. The sector needs to wake up to this and decide what it is going to do about it. Education could provide the wake-up call that power professionals need.
Accept the inevitable
When creating the right circumstances for a new technological solution to thrive, three key factors rank above all.
First, the technology itself needs to work, and work well. Storage scores well on this count, with batteries such as Tesla’s Powerwall capable of storing up to 13.5kWh of electricity – enough to sustain the average household for a full day before needing to draw power from the grid or generate its own renewable energy.
Second, the cost needs to come down to a level at which the solution represents better value than those that are already available. And though batteries for households and power plants remain more expensive than for vehicles, investment in storage on the grid would actually save money on the whole very quickly.
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