Germany’s market-leading residential energy storage system maker Sonnenbatterie is to enter the UK residential energy storage market with its lithium-ion storage system Sonnenbatterie eco.

Energy storage manufacturing is the fastest growing business unit for tool maker Manz, the company has told PV Tech Storage.

Tesla boss Elon Musk has claimed that his company is already sold out of stationary storage products for next year before the first ones have even been shipped to customers.

A large-scale energy storage system aimed at integrating renewables into electricity networks has been completed on the Hawaiian island of Kaua’i, paired with the state’s biggest PV array to date.

Saft wins deal with Saudi Arabian industrial giant, Swiss college adds battery to smart grid research and an energy storage caucus hits Capitol Hill.

One research firm has welcomed predictions from a think tank that Germany’s electricity network could cope with the addition of “huge amounts” of solar-plus-storage and even benefit, but also agreed that policy changes will most likely be required to enable that scenario.

The UK’s Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) has publishing a report which looks at how unlocking the potential of electricity storage through regulatory changes would support the transition to a secure and affordable low carbon economy, adding to a chorus of recent voices on similar topics coming from Britain.

PV Tech Storage spoke to Nancy Pfund of ‘social impact’ investors DBL Partners, among Tesla’s early backers and participants in two of the top five VC fund plays of this year’s third quarter.

In contrast to “behind-the-meter” household energy storage systems, whose operational strategy is generally aimed at local financial optimisation of power consumption, the use cases for battery technologies on an industrial scale are primarily determined by the requirements of the electricity supply grids, particularly the regional distribution grids. SMA’s Voker Wachenfeld and Dr Alexsandra Sasa Bukvic-Schaefer take a closer look at some of the demands and applications driving the sector forward.

The UK government could deliver cheaper electricity bills to households and businesses by pursuing a decentralised energy strategy with solar and storage at its centre, a new report co-ordinated by major consultancy group KPMG has claimed.