Energy storage and batteries are booming, as the world moves resolutely to combat global warming. People of various opinions may have they say. However, as Capgemini spells out succinctly, we cannot have a sustainable energy system without battery storage. This capability must increase by a factor of six by 2030, to meet COP 29 undertakings. But do we have the capacity to achieve this?
Will We Have Enough Batteries to Meet Storage Commitments?
Capgemini believes that battery storage will play a role in nine-tenths of battery capacity. But batteries will also play a significant role in utility control, that fine-tunes the balance between supply and demand. Indeed, batteries will be at the heart of the great energy transition, which is happening all around us.
We have already seen lithium battery prices falling dramatically, as increasing demand enables efficiencies of scale. However, we cannot say that this process will continue, without some breakthrough technology intervening. Investors will not support the revolution, without a competitive return on their money.
We already see signs that energy storage and batteries are booming at the individual level too. We anticipate that every home solar will have its batteries in future. Homeowners will learn to use their home solar battery to save on their electricity bills, as more electric cars enter our communities.
Should We Control the Energy Storage Boom Or Not?
Capgemini raises an interesting point of what happens if we end up with too many batteries, thanks to overproduction. Or if a new super-fast charger renders a large number of them obsolete. The more batteries we make, the more spent ones we need as our source of raw materials.
Are we entering an age where energy storage and batteries are booming out of control? Or will governments introduce a management system to optimize their use? Batteries are part of the bigger picture of renewable energy. But who knows what might replace them some day?
More Information
Battery Storage and Green Energy Intertwined
