The first meeting of the members of the German Energy Storage Association (BVES) took place at the Energy Storage 2013 conference in March. The organization has 63 members, including such diverse companies as Vattenfall, Hochtief Solutions, SMA, Power-One, Gildemeister Energy and Clariant. Three working groups were formed. The first group is responsible for preparing guidelines, standards and quality criteria for energy storage systems. The second is concerned with road maps for the change in energy policy and the role of energy storage systems. The third deals with public relations work. Eicke Weber, Director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), is the organizations first president. He explains the goals of the German Energy Storage Association (BVES).
pv magazine: Today the first meeting of the members of the German Energy Storage Association was convened. Who was in attendance?
Eicke Weber: I have to say that we are all very excited because we discovered that we have more than 60 members and companies from every branch involved with storage technologies from thermal storage systems to electricity storage, all the way through to gas-thermal-compressed air and flywheel energy storage.
What do you aim to achieve with the association?
We want to give a voice to the storage system industry, the industry that implements, develops and researches storage technologies. Up to now there has only been a voice for the solar industry. There is also a voice for the wind industry, but not for storage systems. Storage systems represent a very important element of the change in energy policy that has largely been overlooked thus far.
Why does it make sense to push these numerous different technologies into one association?
Because the topic of storage facilities is one with reciprocal effects. That is, one has various alternatives: How much energy do you want to store as electricity? How much do you want to convert to hydrogen? How much do you want to store as thermal energy? That is why storage facilities are a common topic, although the individual technologies are very different. A pumped storage power station is naturally something completely different from a sodium-sulfur battery. But both do the same thing, both store electricity.
But doesnt this already demarcate the first front lines between the individual technologies?
Not at all. We are all fighting in the same direction and towing the same line. We all want the energy policy change. We want to create 100% renewable energies as quickly as possible. We know that this is only possible if the temporally fluctuating supply of solar and wind energy is buffered through corresponding storage systems. Our opinion is unanimous in this regard.
The German Association of Energy and Water Industries says that the first and foremost task is to develop the electricity grids. What position does the German Energy Storage Association take with regard to this question?
Of course we also have to develop the grids, particularly the regional distribution grids but just have a look at the individual household, the individual house that has a rooftop solar installation. With a 2 kWh battery storage unit a relatively small storage facility private consumption can easily be doubled. That is, instead of 30% private consumption, one then has 60% private consumption. And that means instead of 70% electricity from the grid, only 40% from the grid. That is a giant step for a relatively small investment.
So it is not correct that the grids should be developed first and storage systems later?
Absolutely. We have to start implementing storage systems today. Of course they will only make a real difference in macroeconomic terms in ten years. But if we do not begin today, this technology will not be introduced in ten years.
What does the work of the association look like in practical terms? What are the next steps?
The next nine months will be very intense politically. We will have elections for the German Parliament, and after the election we will all have to agree on an amendment to the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG). I like to say that the future law should be an energy transition law. And for this we have to carry out important preparatory work. I think that the BVES has been established not a moment too soon because it is imperative that we exert an influence on this development.
What does this preparatory work look like?
In the working groups we will develop scenarios and arguments with our member companies that we want to contribute to the political decision making process.
With the aim that storage systems are implemented today already?
With the aim that the regulations that are to be introduced into the new Renewable Energy Sources Act also include the possibility of storage.
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