The Hawai‘i Public Utilities Commission has approved two new programmes expanding its customers’ abilities to install rooftop PV and energy storage systems, while also clarifying the terms of its existing programmes.

In its home territory of Germany, energy storage provider Sonnen is making a play to replace utilities, but its business models in the US will instead emphasise cooperation with existing energy suppliers.

China-based EV and storage specialist BYD is to supply batteries to projects built by Silicon Valley commercial energy storage provider Green Charge, which is a subsidiary Engie North America.

US trade association groups, the Energy Storage Association and Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), have called on their respective industries to assist hurricane relief efforts in the US and its territories.

Vionx, National Grid and the US Department of Energy have teamed up to install a 3MWh flow battery-based energy storage system in Massachusetts.

What does it mean to be all things to all people? Does it overstretch resources to breaking point, or does it give you a chance to cast a wider net and capture market share? Vivint Solar recently joined Tesla in a race to offer whole packages including solar, storage, EV charging and other components to US customers. We talked to GTM Research’s Brett Simon on some of the dynamics of those parallel strategies.

While it may seem like an obvious choice for US states to include energy storage into their Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) commitments, in reality, standalone targets and mandates for energy storage procurement have been preferred.

The largest grid-connected energy storage system in Massachusetts will be used to determine the value of the technology throughout the US Commonwealth territory, supported by a Department of Energy Resources (DOER) grant.

​Green Charge, a subsidiary of Engie, will install 1.6MWh of energy storage alongside solar at five schools in California’s Visalia Unified School District.

Senator Martin Heinrich has proposed granting tax relief for purchasers of energy storage systems, in a similar way to how the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) is applied to residential solar PV purchases.