Another roundup of recent user-posted hot takes and analysis from the energy storage industry.
Last week’s BESS Industry Buzz comprised some takeaways from the Energy Storage Summit Germany. So today’s has some from this week but also some that would otherwise have gone in last week’s, so might be a bit older than usual. Enjoy!
Balance of risk and reward between BESS owners and traders
Jordan D, founder and CEO of energy trading infrastructure consultancy A115, gave an interesting take on the balance of risk and reward between those owning BESS projects in Europe and those trading them. Recent developments show project owners and developers having a bad time while the trading space booms, he argues.
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Romania: how many batteries will make the money they expect?
ESN readers may be aware how busy Romania has become as a grid-scale storage market. We covered four projects progressing in a roundup this week.
Daniel Pintilie, founder and lead advisor for Solarcap Investments which acts as a BESS M&A broker in Romania, wrote this week about how quickly capacity is coming online and what this means for those investing in projects.
Australia: developer model is dead
The Australian market has matured and simply developing and selling projects is no longer a viable business, writes Sheng Fang, global strategy at EV infrastructure firm StarCharge.
“The venture-capital-style returns that once came from securing land, approval and a connection offer have evaporated,” he said.
What affects BESS ROI
Ever wondered why two BESS with almost the same data sheet can have completely different return on investmetn (ROI) timelines? Angie Z, director of strategic partnerships for supplier Gooree dived into this in a much-commented post.
Energy Vault’s gravity storage tech still to be proven
Energy Vault’s first large-scale commercial project using its gravity-based energy storage technology has been online for a few years, but it still hasn’t been proven. Michael Barnard, chief strategist at consultancy TFIE Strategy, discussed why.
Thermal energy storage: no longer just a future technology
Thermal energy storage has arrived, with 51 large-scale projects operating worldwide, writes academic and BESS industry figurehead Jan Rosenow.
Northvolt recycling assets acquired
So this one is actually based on a Bloomberg article, but one of the companies involved commented on the reporter’s post, confirming the story. Critical materials firm Refinyx and investor Qarlbo Energy have together acquired the recycling assets of failed lithium-ion battery OEM Northvolt. Most of the rest of Northvolt has already been acquired by US startup Lyten.
Finland grid fee reforms
What do TSO Fingrid’s propose grid fee reforms mean for those building BESS projects in Finland? Aurora Energy Research analyst Gabriela Peña Balderrama discussed this in a post, see it here.
Challenges of scaling flow batteries
Why aren’t flow batteries everywhere yet? The answer lies in the balance of plant (BOP), not performance, writes Munir Khan, quality & production specialist at lithium-ion solution manufacturer Robust Energy Solutions.
Why do battery startups fail?
Unfortunately, we regularly cover stories of battery startups that held much promise but ultimately failed to translate lab-proven tech into commercially viable products. Scientific advisor Nigel Taylor and colleagues looked into this, see his post here on it.
