Fundamental changes in how battery energy storage technology works come faster than they have done in solar PV or wind historically – and governments and regulators will need to adapt to keep up, one industry insider has told Energy-Storage.News.

A multi-million pound EU funded project is set to provide the Isles of Scilly with a new smart energy system, using new software platforms to manage supply and demand through renewables, energy storage and electric vehicles.

UK regulator Ofgem and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) are planning to publish their response to the smart power call for evidence (CFE) in late May or early June.

To mark the launch of the new-look Energy-Storage.News site, our team profile six of the leading global system integrators working in energy storage today.

Electric car maker turned ‘integrated sustainable energy company’ Tesla installed 98MWh of energy storage in the final quarter of 2016, according to its financial results released last week.

From Energy-Storage.News’ publisher comes The Global Energy Storage Opportunity, a special online-only supplement magazine that looks at some of the exciting recent developments in all segments from microgrids and residential to grid-scale and commercial.

Last year was a “seminal year” for energy storage, where the technology moved from “dream to reality”, according to impact investor Nancy Pfund, one of the earliest backers to Tesla and SolarCity.

The complexities of combining batteries and solar microgrids are explained by Sam Duby, who is co-founder and director of research and development at mini-grid technologies company SteamaCo Ltd and consults for TFE Consulting. TFE Consulting is a strategy consulting firm focusing on accelerating the energy transition in emerging markets and is active in Africa, India, Southeast Asia and Latin America.

Sydney-based lead-acid energy storage specialist Ecoult has secured AU$4.1 million (US$3.13 million) recoupable funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) to develop and commericalise its UltraBattery products.

News in brief: A selection of news highlights from the energy storage sector including a new approach to benefit stacking from Panasonic in Colorado.