Workable alternatives to utility power involving energy storage are beginning to emerge with new and innovative business models, according to an investment advisor who worked on Younicos’ recent US$50 million “land grab”.
Building control manufacturer Johnson Controls, a recent entrant to the energy storage market, has announced a US$20 billion takeover of security and fire protection firm Tyco as it looks to consolidate its offering in the smart building sector.
French manufacturer Leclanche will supply battery storage systems to a 13MW capacity storage project with 53MWh of storage duration in Ontario to be used for voltage control and in providing reactive power support to the grid.
Almost US$700 million of corporate funding went into energy storage in 2015, including US$397 million from venture capital (VC) investment, according to the latest report from Mercom Capital.
Although Britain’s government has cut support for renewable energy severely in the past few months, controversially claiming a need to balance the transition away from fossil fuels against the cost to consumers, energy storage may face less of a challenge at the top level, according speakers at a conference in London.
Misconceptions over the true value of energy storage are developing because of a “narrow focus” on the initial costs of the technology, a report has concluded.
The US Department of Energy is to fund six projects trialling the combination of solar and energy storage.
Flow battery manufacturer ViZn Energy Systems has won a contract to provide a 128kW/320kWh system for a US department of energy project.
News in brief: Nissan commits to longer range EV batteries from UK plant, a first in energy storage financing for Green Charge, American Vanadium plans acquisition of Gildemeister, Ceres and Honda developing solid oxide fuel cell stacks for power equipment.
Analysis firm IHS has said that as of the end of 2015’s fourth quarter, the pipeline of planned energy storage projects using batteries or flywheels had reached 1.6GW, in a year which had seen a “change in stakeholder mentality” in favour of the technologies.
