The cost of energy storage technologies is set to reduce significantly over the next five years driven by economies of scale and improvements in both technology and standardisation, according to a new report from financial advisory and asset management firm Lazard.

Software for energy storage systems will be a mixture of in-house solutions by integrator/ developers and third-party providers, in an industry segment set for a steep rise in value, according to one expert.

China’s deployment of energy storage looks set to continue an upward trajectory, with almost 600MW in the pipeline as of the third quarter this year.

Battery storage specialist Younicos has been selected by Centrica to design the 49MW battery storage project that was last week awarded a 15-year Capacity Market contract.

Australian power firm Genex has completed a study showing it is technically feasible to connect a pumped hydro storage facility with its 50MW(ac) Kidston Solar Project in North Queensland, Australia.

An Arizona scheme to study the use of energy storage and smart inverters in integrating solar to the grid has contracted the deployment of 4MW of AES Energy Storage’s lithium battery systems.

Developers who were successful in winning contracts within last week’s Capacity Market auction have lauded the “crucial role” battery storage is set to play in the future for the national grid.

News in brief: Sunverge launches AC-coupled systems, whether South Australia’s blackouts could have been a different story with batteries, German government approves model region project for renewables, storage and grids.

The number of battery storage projects to have won 15-year contracts in the latest Capacity Market auction is a sign of “considerable confidence” in the technology, according to the director of the Electricity Storage Network.

Storage projects have landed more than 3.2GW of contracts in the latest UK provisional Capacity Market auction results.