Energy Storage

Plant and grid operators start a progressive pilot project for better grid integration. This was presented at the “PV System Technology Forum” in Düsseldorf, Germany.

Research and consulting firm GlobalData’s latest report shows that the global microgrid market will be worth US$18.9 billion in 2020. This will be a significant increase from the US$5.3 billion reaped in 2012.

Germany’s Federal Environment Minister is still advocating PV storage incentives from May onwards. However the funding issue remains unresolved. Peter Altmaier also mentioned at the Energy Storage conference in Düsseldorf that he expects more than 4 GW of PV development in Germany this year.

The utility-scale advanced battery market in the Asia Pacific region will amount to 25.1 GW of storage and be worth US$12 billion in 2022, according to a report by Pike Research.

The Energy Storage conference in Düsseldorf, Germany, began with more than 500 visitors. Project examples show the conditions under which storage systems pay off and make sense.

Documentation relating to the new EU energy infrastructure guidelines has laid bare just how savagely austerity-driven leaders cut the funds available to upgrade grids to harness renewables.

An inverter buyers survey conducted by IHS Inc. revealed that there is a growing need for energy storage in PV systems. More than 400 global PV inverter customers responded to the survey, of which a third expect to be using energy storage in over 40% of the PV systems they install by 2015.

The European PV Industry Association (EPIA) has endorsed the recent European Commission (EC) working paper on PV storage and says more must be done to encourage storage systems at a consumer, as well as distribution, level.

Germany’s support program for photovoltaic battery storage systems is currently on hold, due to lost revenues from emissions trading. The framework for the program had already largely been agreed upon by the Federal Environment Ministry and KfW state bank.

The new subsidies for battery storage systems will apply retroactively to all photovoltaic systems installed this year and have a maximum capacity of 30 kW. The German Environment Ministry and KfW state bank have not made any official announcements, however, the program is expected to be introduced in the coming week.