Energy Storage

Solar alliance first of many anticipated agreements and pledges over the coming two weeks in Paris, which could prove crucial in determining how the globe tackles climate change in the few years.

The 16th Forum Solarpraxis kicked off today with the good news that German storage subsidies are likely to continue for the next three years. A parliamentary committee is currently discussing the issue. As of 2017, meanwhile, 5% of tendered projects under the EEG will be opened to electricity from abroad. New energy business models and legal frameworks were also discussed, as was how storage knowledge can be transferred from the auto industry to solar.

Encouraging households to add sufficient storage to their PV arrays to disconnect from the electricity grid may leave an unfair burden of high utility payments to those left connected. Ric Brazzale, the Managing Director of Green Energy Trading says that a large movement of households off the grid may be bad for consumers without necessarily doing anything for the environment.

LG Chem will supply Steag with six of its large-scale lithium ion (Li-ion) batteries for what will become the largest energy storage system project of its kind, when complete, in 2017. Steag is investing EUR 100 million in the 90 MW project.

The expiration of Germany’s energy storage program this December is expected to see market growth contract 13% in 2016, says EuPD Research. This year, up to 16,000 small scale solar+storage systems are forecast to be installed in the country, up from 5,000 two years ago. An end of year rush and a drop in PV system prices are anticipated from those looking to profit from the funding before it ends.

In a new report, Friends of the Earth (FOE) calculates that switching to 100% renewable energy in Africa, Latin America and most of Asia by 2030 would cost US$5.15 trillion – equivalent to the amount held by the world’s 782 wealthiest people. It concludes the financing for transforming the energy landscape exists, but that the political will is “shockingly” absent. Solar, meanwhile, is envisaged as playing a key role.

The U.S., Japan and South Korea are the leading energy storage markets worldwide, says IHS, with each forecast to exceed 100 MW of annual installations this year. Between 2015 – 16, they are set to install 1.4 GW of new capacity. Large-scale system costs, meanwhile, are expected to fall significantly by 2019, which will spur global growth.

Electric car production is likely to accelerate in the wake of the VW emissions scandal, according to Audi’s top U.S. exec. While Daimler appears content to use Asian-made batteries, there are increasing calls for German automakers to work together to develop the next generation of batteries in Europe.

Researchers from Germany’s Technical University of Munich (TUM) have discovered key processes by which lithium ion batteries lose capacity. The scientists believe that battery life can be enhanced through adjusting the process by which lithium ion batteries form a pacifying layer on graphite anodes or by carrying out modifications on the cathode surface.