Electricity storage could be the “glue” that holds electricity networks together in the near future, according to UK politician Alan Whitehead MP, speaking at a parliamentary reception held to launch a new report published by the Electricity Storage Network.

In the year that has passed since Germany began offering subsidies for lithium-ion battery systems for residential use, around 4,000 solar-plus-batteries have been installed, the country’s Federal Solar Industry Association (BSW Solar) has announced.

Swiss inverter manufacturer, SolarMax, is to launch a range of PV self-consumption and storage technologies at Intersolar Europe next month.

Bosch claims it has developed an energy management system for optimising electrical and thermal energy consumption from solar power systems, which the company will launch at this year’s Intersolar exhibition and conference.

SolarCity looks likely to resume its programme of deploying residential energy storage systems in California, following a preliminary ruling by the state’s Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) appeared to rule in the company’s favour.

Representatives of battery and energy storage companies including AES Corporation and FIAMM believe the priority for the nascent energy storage industry should be to standardise technologies, along with developing a regulatory framework that recognises the value of storage.

Fees being charged to interconnect residential storage systems to the grid in California are “arbitrary” and “punitive”, while some may even be illegal, according to US installer SolarCity.

Electrical storage has been much hyped as a key technology in the ongoing deployment of solar. But as Andy Colthorpe reports, with take-up of the technology so far only patchy, the coming year will be a crucial one for storage to prove its worth.

Japan has launched a subsidy programme to support the installation of lithium-ion battery-based stationary storage systems, offering to pay individuals and entities up to two-thirds of their purchase price.

Over two-thirds of German PV installers are now offering their customers energy storage options, while their British and Italian counterparts are beginning to follow suit, according to a new report from EuPD Research.