Energy Storage

Swiss storage system provider releases financial report for 2017 showing losses, due to growth capital delay. Project from 2017 pipeline will be finished in 2018, however, promising a strong year ahead. Overall, it expects 100 MWh of operational storage projects this year.

SolarEdge has announced the launch of a new virtual power plant solution promising grid services and reducing the necessity for costly grid infrastructure investments.

The goal of the project, RE 8760 is to show how the storage of renewable energies can make them usable all year round. The generated solar power is stored and converted into hydrogen. It can also be conserved over long periods and used to recharge fuel cell vehicles during the dark winter months.

The German car maker entered the solar PV home storage business in mid-2016. In the future, its parent company, Daimler will align the stationary storage segment with its grid business.

The water-based battery relies on a reversible chemical reaction that stores electrons in the form of hydrogen gas. Despite encouraging first results, the prototype developed by the research team now needs to be further developed.

The German company was chosen among eight bidders through an expression of interest process. It will be responsible for the construction, assembly and commissioning of a lithium manufacturing facility. The Bolivian government expects an annual income of US$1 billion.

The latest report by Mercom Capital finds VC investment in battery storage companies rising five-fold year-over-year to $299 million in 12 deals.

The Terra High Power charger can charge an electric vehicle (EV) in just eight minutes, thus adding up to 200 km of range, says ABB, which launched the new model at this year’s Hannover Messe.

National trade association, the ESA has published a roadmap for the adoption of 35 GW of energy storage in the U.S., as well as outlining the benefits of such a move. pv magazine USA spoke with CEO, Kelly Speakes-Backman about storage and the challenges of state-level advocacy at ESA’s annual conference in Boston.

In a new report, the association states that urgent action is required for, among other issues, the improvement of solar generation forecasts, the exploitation of storage systems, and the reduction of minimum operation and start-up times for both existing and new thermal and hydro generators.