The US energy storage market grew 243% last year, making 2015 the biggest year of any on record for storage, according to GTM Research.

A hydro power plant in Germany has installed a 3MW lithium-ion battery made by manufacturer ads-tec to perform frequency regulation.

In the simplest terms, if 2014 was the year of test deployments and proving storage can work, 2015 was a year of getting things done. But what are the big trends likely to drive the space on in 2016? Lux Research closely tracks the energy storage industry, in combination with solar, in terms of its synergy with EVs and in its own right. Andy Colthorpe spoke with Lux analyst Cosmin Laslau to get his views and predictions on what we can expect to see this year.

Roundup: EV registrations leaped 68% in 2015, EDF goes to PJM and SolarCity launches solar, storage and heat in integrated offering in Hawaii.

German utility E.On is to develop its own energy storage products in partnership with manufacturer SOLARWATT.

Utilities will “embrace energy storage” this year, while the development of standardised contracts and aggregated behind-the-meter storage are expected to take the energy storage world by storm, according to Navigant Research.

Germany’s support programme for solar-plus-storage systems, which offers a rebate on the devices, has been officially re-launched as expected by the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy.

Nigel Morris, chief executive at solar firm RoofJuice Australia, who has been in the solar game for more than two decades, explains what stands in the way of Australia’s significant energy storage potential.

Thus far, the relationship between incumbent utilities and the rise of distributed energy storage has been a difficult one. Cosmin Laslau of Lux Research gives his quick take on one US utility’s plan to stay in the game, offering Tesla Powerwalls to customers in three different ownership models.

Energy storage is to be included in India’s state-run solar energy tenders for the first time under plans to help smoother integration of renewables into the grid.