Powering Through – 05-2025
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Table of content
Powering Through – 05-2025
2025
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Powering Through – 05-2025
2025
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In a world of low-cost batteries, performance matters
Oversupply of lithium-ion battery precursor and active materials – and of lithium iron-phosphate (LFP) batteries, especially in China – has driven energy storage system costs down, fueling a record 330 GWh of battery energy storage system (BESS) shipments in 2024. Edward Rackley, head of the energy storage team at Business intelligence specialist CRU, shares his analysis.
Jun 30, 2025
Solar. Storage. Flexibility.
The concept of “too much solar” was inconceivable a decade ago. Today, the picture is quite different. Europe installed 65.5 GW of PV in 2024. Solar is the cheapest energy source across most of the world and will be the world’s largest source of electricity by 2033, according to the International Energy Agency. So our challenges have changed.
May 05, 2025
What Germany can learn from British BESS
The United Kingdom is arguably Europe’s most mature battery energy storage market, with asset owners free to build revenue stacks from grid ancillary services, a capacity market, wholesale markets, and a revamped balancing platform. Baris Serifsoy of GreenCap Partners examines how the British experience can inform Germany’s energy storage sector.
May 05, 2025
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Spain’s storage sunrise
Spain had more than 1,100 hours of zero- or negatively-priced electricity in 2024: more than 45 days. Despite this, battery energy storage systems (BESS) remain rare, with grid operator Red Eléctrica España (REE) recording just 3.36 GW of grid-connected energy storage, 3.3 GW of which was pumped hydro. A new capacity market and other policy tweaks may be needed to hit ambitious deployment targets.
May 02, 2025
Battling battery imbalance
Imbalances – when battery components fail to operate in unison – are a recurring challenge in energy storage projects. Kai-Philipp Kairies, CEO of Accure Battery Intelligence, examines the root causes of imbalances, their effects on operations and return on investment, and actionable best practices to mitigate them.
May 02, 2025
Curaçao’s 100% renewable journey
Islands are showing leadership in the transition to 100% renewable energy, proving it is technically and economically feasible. Among the first movers, Curaçao’s journey continues to accelerate. The path ahead for the Caribbean nation is being paved with strong stakeholder collaboration, targeted international advocacy, and new engagement initiatives designed to crowdsource cutting-edge solutions, write Gianni Chianetta and Francesco Luise of the Greening the Islands Foundation (GTI).
May 02, 2025
Co-location, integration
Energy storage is the name of the game across many of Europe’s largest energy markets this year, as crowded grids become a bottleneck to new solar and wind installations. pv magazine met with Bernhard Suchland, CEO of project services provider Sunotec, for an update on large-scale solar and battery projects in Germany and Bulgaria.
May 02, 2025
Europe’s mature energy storage market
Battery energy storage system (BESS) deployment has ballooned in the United Kingdom since the first grid-supporting Enhanced Frequency Response services auction, in 2016. With complex revenue stacks and a project pipeline fit to burst, Great Britain’s BESS fleet has transitioned from industry upstart to a well-established, vital part of the energy system, as Matthew Lynas reports.
May 02, 2025
A thorny path for Russian solar
Solar energy development in Russia has long been sluggish, overshadowed by its fossil fuel economy. Western sanctions imposed after the Ukraine invasion have further hindered growth but improvements in efficiency and lower construction costs could help the industry take off.
May 02, 2025
Brazil at a crossroads
Brazil faces a crucial choice over its electricity future, writes Markus Vlasits, president of the Brazilian association for energy storage solutions (ABSAE). Invest in an outdated, costly model built around thermal power plants or adopt a modern, flexible, and sustainable solution with battery energy storage systems (BESS). The decision is not just technical but strategic: Stay stuck in the past or lead the energy transition.
May 02, 2025
Sweden’s heat pump flex
As grid operators struggle to secure enough flexibility to accommodate more renewable energy, Sweden has an eye on home heating as a potential solution. pv magazine caught up with Caroline Haglund Stignor, from the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) Heat Pump Centre, to find out more.
May 02, 2025
A tale of two realities for Romanian renewables
On paper, Romania appears to be putting its faith in solar and energy storage. Analysts say the investment outlook is very positive, particularly for battery energy storage systems (BESS) but local companies want more long-term certainty from the government. With elections this month, and a change of administration expected, this stability is unlikely to materialize.
May 02, 2025
pv magazine test: March 2025 results
George Touloupas, vice president for ESG and new services at Clean Energy Associates (CEA), and Huatian Xu, CEA’s director of technology and quality, break down the March 2025 performance results from pv magazine’s outdoor PV test site in Yinchuan, China.
May 02, 2025
Tariffs topple optimism
Solar module prices in Asia and Europe have begun to rise uniformly but the unprecedented international tariffs announced by the United States have disrupted the global PV market, threatening the fragile price recovery. Hanwei Wu, of OPIS, examines the PV pricing landscape.
May 02, 2025
Industry highlights
The pv magazine Awards recognize excellence across the solar and energy storage supply chains, showcasing outstanding products and projects to a global audience. Entries are now open for the pv magazine Awards 2025 and we’ve already received some great submissions across all categories. Winners will be selected by a panel of expert jurors and announced in December 2025. Until then, we’ll be highlighting some of the quality entries vying for victory across seven categories.
May 02, 2025
A battery of reasons for optimism
The ability of battery energy storage systems (BESS) to leverage solar power as the energy and transportation sectors converge will only drive more battery demand, says Tim Buckley, director of Climate Energy Finance (CEF), an Australia-based think tank.
May 02, 2025
Stored potential
Batteries are booming in 2025, as solar and wind power come up against the growing challenge of simultaneous generation concentrated around certain parts of the day. “Cannibalization is in effect,” as Thomas Rosenzopf states this month. Energy storage is increasingly showing its value as a central piece in the energy transition puzzle and investors […]
May 02, 2025
Blending in
A new report by the University of Freiburg and the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) suggests that aesthetically pleasing integration can increase the social acceptance of solar, particularly in historic buildings. Andreas Wessels of the Fraunhofer ISE presents the findings of an interdisciplinary study.
May 02, 2025
Solar support slipping
The US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is on the way out as President Donald Trump embarks on a significant rollback of cleantech industrial policy. Just how far and how fast are open questions but tax credits for solar are under threat, as Jesse Pichel, of Roth Capital Partners, reports.
May 02, 2025
Italian airport PV: More than just pilot projects
Airports landed on a list of areas suitable for renewable energy projects that was issued by the Italian Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security (MASE) in June 2024, meaning simplified authorization processes and lesser environmental protections. For the aviation industry, it’s a decarbonization opportunity worth taking.
May 02, 2025
Disrupt or be disrupted
The news that oil companies Shell and BP are cutting renewable energy investment to refocus on oil and gas seems like a major blow to the energy transition. Looking at the bigger picture, however, a familiar pattern is emerging. Daan Walter, from energy think tank Ember, argues the move isn’t a setback but rather the transition’s next phase – and if the West wants to stay competitive, it must act now.
May 02, 2025
Why Europe needs a battery industry
Europe may be pushing ahead with the integration of energy storage into grids, but it has struggled to compete on battery manufacturing. Gerard Reid of Alexa Capital outlines the steps that European industry and policymakers must take to establish a domestic battery supply chain.
May 02, 2025
Turning policy into action
Europe stands at a crossroads in its efforts to revive solar manufacturing, with the European Union’s Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) providing the necessary tools and the Clean Industrial Deal, alongside growing geopolitical awareness, driving momentum. Christoph Podewils, secretary-general of the European Solar Manufacturing Council, looks at how those policies can put Europe back in the game.
May 02, 2025
Solar energy’s insurance policy
France experienced a significant rise in negatively-price electricity hours in 2024, with the figure more than doubling to 359 hours, from 147 hours in 2023, according to data from grid operator RTE. The negative prices reflected the growing output of renewable energy, primarily solar power, during the day, and an electricity system struggling to adapt to the new reality. Hybrid and standalone batteries provide a promising solution to the declining value of solar energy while also helping to balance the grid, pv magazine France’s Gwénaëlle Deboutte reports.
May 02, 2025
Making revenues stack up
Poor profitability for daytime solar generation is driving a likely paradigm shift, argues Michael Salomon. The president of energy storage consultancy Clean Horizon says Europe needs more than market signals to keep investors interested in renewables and storage.
May 02, 2025
Thermal stress wears out perovskites
Researchers are gaining a clearer understanding of the impact of thermal cycling on perovskite solar cells. Antonio Abate, a researcher at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB), provides insight into the impact of thermal stress, including defect formation and potential mitigation measures.
May 02, 2025
Sweden’s heat pump flex
As grid operators struggle to secure enough flexibility to accommodate more renewable energy, Sweden has an eye on home heating as a potential solution. pv magazine caught up with Caroline Haglund Stignor, from the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) Heat Pump Centre, to find out more.
May 02, 2025
Transformer bottleneck
You can build an entire energy infrastructure project and still wait years to flip the switch. In today’s market, it’s not the modules or permitting that cause the longest delays. Clean Energy Associates’ (CEA) Eddy Ji explains how high demand for transformers and other essential grid infrastructure equipment is slowing things down.
May 02, 2025
EVs and European grids
Climate change mitigation and energy security are driving European efforts to decarbonize transport, but the sector’s emissions and oil dependency are rising despite electric vehicle (EV) uptake. Carrie Hampel explores how Europe is aligning transport needs with energy capacity.
May 02, 2025
Energy storage growth despite headwinds
As Europe accelerates its energy transition, integrating more renewables requires enhanced battery energy storage solutions to ensure grid stability and maximize their value. Susan Taylor and Susanne von Aichberger, of S&P Global Commodity Insights, examine the state of play for European solar and storage in 2025.
May 02, 2025
Italy: the next BESS place to be?
Support schemes new and old, coupled with an ability to participate in grid-strengthening “ancillary service” markets, will drive Italian energy storage. Interest is growing but the complexity of integrating battery energy storage systems (BESS) into the grid should not be underestimated.
May 02, 2025
