Renewables to drive storage growth in US, policy changes needed too

The future of US energy storage -- and battery storage, in particular -- is bright, especially given the expected growth in renewables and distributed generation capacity in the coming decade.

According to energy professionals surveyed by Mortenson, storage will serve as a major catalyst for the industry’s transformation, but this will not come easily. Regulatory changes will be key to the growth of electricity storage and the technology achieving commercial viability, a high percentage of those polled said. Currently, California, New York and Texas are viewed as the states most supportive of electricity storage development over the next five to seven years.

“While energy storage is not universally cost effective across the US today, there will be this ‘quantum leap’ moment when technology costs drop and the regulatory environment and policies improve, and then the market just takes off. That moment has not yet arrived but it’s coming,” said Brent Bergland, general manager at Mortenson.

When asked where will energy storage achieve its greatest proliferation in five-seven years, 57% of all professionals said this would happen in applications that integrate renewables. Distributed energy applications, grid support and ancillary service are also seen to support storage growth.

Industry experts expect increased competition and a different role for utilities in the future with 89% believing the electric power industry will look and operate differently 10 years from now. When asked how it would be different, 38% and 24% said there will be more distributed generation and more renewables, respectively. There will also be more storage, but for that to happen costs must be cut, viable business models must be developed and tested, and the regulatory environment must change.

For the study (www.mortenson.com/storage2016) Mortenson surveyed 165 professionals at the Energy Storage Association Annual Conference and Expo.

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