The U.S. energy storage market is in a period of transition.
Last year was a big one for storage, with Q4 2015 alone logging more total megawatts deployed than 2013 and 2014 combined. This growth drew increased attention from investors, regulators, consumers, and system operators. And in 2016, battery storage has expanded its foothold beyond its historically favorable markets, capitalizing on improved economics and a renewed focus on reliability. GTM Research has analyzed several key indicators of a transition for America’s storage market.
Front-of-the-meter deployment trends
The front-of-the-meter energy storage market logged another strong quarter in Q2 2016, recording 32 megawatts of new installations. This new capacity is down 10 percent from Q2 2015, but up over threefold from Q1 2016, continuing the trend from 2015 of deployments increasing toward the end of the calendar year.
Grid-scale energy storage is getting traction outside of its historically strong markets. New deployments in PJM are down in 2016 following the institution of an interim cap on RegD resources the frequency regulation market. For the first time since Q2 2014, PJM did not represent the majority of utility-scale deployments.
Front-of-the-meter policy trends
Policy developments dominated news in the front-of-the-meter market. Energy storage procurements in response to the Aliso Canyon gas leak in California could serve as a case study for energy storage as an expedited solution to capacity issues. SDG&E has signed an agreement with AES to install and commission 37.5 megawatts of Samsung batteries by January 2017. SCE has announced two 20-megawatt projects, one to be built by AltaGas with Greensmith batteries and one using Tesla batteries, along with a 2-megawatt project by Powin Energy and a 5-megawatt project from Western Grid. Successful deployment in the short timeframe required would be a tremendous success story for grid-scale batteries, and serve as further proof of the technology’s speed of installation and potential to enhance reliability.
Recent Comments