Utility Scale Storage

The US government says electrolysis could reduce clean-hydrogen production costs to $1/kg by 2031, while ABI Research claims the global levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH) will become cost-competitive by the end of this decade, dropping to $2.50/kg.

The International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme (IEA PVPS) is starting a new Task 20: Energy Hubs for Green Hydrogen. This joint effort with the IEA Wind and Hydrogen Technology Collaboration Programmes (TCPs) seeks to advance the integration of wind, solar, and hydrogen technologies into hybrid energy systems that produce green hydrogen efficiently and sustainably. Running from 2025 to 2028, Task 20 will address the practical, technical, environmental, and societal challenges associated with hybrid energy hubs, providing actionable insights for their implementation on a global scale.

The list of preferred bidders for the third window of South Africa’s Battery Energy Storage Independent Power Producers Procurement Program (BESIPPPP) will be announced in February 2025.

Scientists in the United Kingdom have simulated how a 1 GW off-grid agrivoltaic facility may be used to fuel hydrogen fuel electric cell vehicles across Australia, California, China, Nigeria, and Spain. Their techno-economic analysis showed that the proposed combination could provide a levelized cost of hydrogen ranging from $3.90/kg to $8.13/kg.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has commissioned a 500 kW solar rooftop project in Tuvalu’s capital, Funafuti, along with a 2 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS).

TagEnergy will develop and manage the Cernay-lès-Reims project, which is scheduled for grid connection in late 2025. It will have a storage capacity nearly five times larger than France’s current largest operational battery.

BMW Group says it will switch its Regensburg plant logistics to hydrogen by 2026, replacing electric vehicles with hydrogen-powered forklifts and tugger trains, while Exolum has launched a new business line to offer integrated logistics solutions across the hydrogen value chain

Batteries will form part of the consumer picture within two to three years, according to Júlio Bortolini, from Brazilian conglomerate Soprano.

More than 300 entries from across 36 countries were received for the pv magazine Awards 2024, making this year’s program the most competitive yet. From modules and inverters to projects and storage, innovation was on display across the board.

Rapidly increasing energy consumption due to data centers, EVs and AI, requires adopting innovative energy strategies like distributed energy resources and microgrids that offer viable solutions for a more resilient, responsive energy infrastructure.