In conclusion, a storage technology review was conducted by analysing several storage technologies suited for grid-scale applications, load shifting and energy arbitrage.
Although a study by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) has shown that increased storage deployment can reduce overall system costs in a renewables-dominated grid, projects often struggle to secure stable revenue streams and achieve economic viability under current market structures.
It explores various types of energy storage technologies, including batteries, pumped hydro storage, compressed air energy storage, and thermal energy storage, assessing their capabilities, limitations, and suitability for grid applications.
Technological breakthroughs and evolving market dynamics have triggered a remarkable surge in energy storage deployment across the electric grid in front of and behind-the-meter (BTM).
Energy from sunlight or other renewable energy is converted to potential energy for storage in devices such as electric batteries. The stored potential energy is later converted to electricity that is added to the power grid, even when the original energy source is not available.
A zero-carbon future by 2050 would require 930GW storage capacity in the U.S 33, and the grid may need 225-460 GW of long duration energy storage (LDES) capacity 34.
Lithium-ion batteries (with various sub-types) have high energy density and efficiency, and have been deployed in grid applications like renewable energy storage (e.g., coupled to a solar plant) and as backup power systems.
Given the increasing need of grid-scale energy storage, other novel technologies are gaining attention and pre-commercial research funding (U.S. Department of Energy, 2021).
Although lead-acid batteries for medium- and large-scale energy storage applications have been commercially available for decades, the low energy density and short cycle life currently limit the use of this technology in widespread grid applications.
Current commercially available "grid scale" storage options include pumped hydro storage and batteries. Among future technologies, green hydrogen is currently seen as the front-runner.
