As the long-awaited call for evidence (CfE) on the future of the UK’s smart power policy gets ever closer, David Pratt outlines the five key areas the UK government is seeking to address in the upcoming document.

NEC Energy Solutions, a subsidiary of NEC Corporation, announced that it is supplying the Sterling Municipal Light Department (SMLD) of Sterling, Massachusetts, with a 2MW, 3.9 MWh energy storage solution.

Two large-scale solar plants planned for the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido will be paired with utility-scale energy storage, in order to meet regulations set out by the region’s electricity authority.

The first grid-scale installation of the Tesla Powerpack system in Europe has been completed in the UK by Camborne Energy Storage and is already providing ancillary services to the National Grid.

Sam Wilkinson, of IHS Markit, talks to Energy-Storage.News about the winners in the UK’s recent 200MW Enhanced Frequency Response (EFR) tender which saw utility and renewables giants share the spoils.

There is “great appetite” within the commercial battery storage market, however far more investment certainty is needed over pricing and regulatory hurdles such as double-pricing for it to realise its potential.

The global grid-connected energy storage project pipeline is forecasted to hit 2GW this year; a 20% increase on the figures for the end of 2015, according to new analysis by IHS.

NEC Energy Solutions will provide a 1.2MWh lithium ion battery system for a grid stabilising project in Bavaria, Germany.

Morgan Stanley has predicted a boom in solar-plus-storage in Australia, calling PV a direct substitute for grid power and warning investors that the incumbent energy industry has been slow to react to trends.

Korean firm Kokam has supplied two lithium nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) oxide batteries to utility Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) for frequency regulation on the South Korean grid.