European energy storage deployment

What does the European Commission say about energy storage?

The Commission adopted in March 2023 a list of recommendations to ensure greater deployment of energy storage, accompanied by a staff working document, providing an outlook of the EU’s current regulatory, market, and financing framework for storage and identifies barriers, opportunities and best practices for its development and deployment.

Why should energy storage technologies be deployed?

An appropriate deployment of energy storage technologies is of primary importance for the transition towards an energy system. For that reason, this database has been created as a complement for the Study on energy storage - contribution to the security of the electricity supply in Europe. The database includes three different approaches:

What is the European commission'recommendation on energy storage - underpinning a decarbonised and secure EU?

In its latest effort to support the deployment of energy storage in Europe, the European Commission adopted its “Recommendation on Energy Storage – Underpinning a decarbonised and secure EU energy system,” on March 14, 2023. It addresses the most pressing issues to help accelerate the broad deployment of energy storage by the EU member states.

How much energy storage will Europe have in 2022?

Many European energy-storage markets are growing strongly, with 2.8 GW (3.3 GWh) of utility-scale energy storage newly deployed in 2022, giving an estimated total of more than 9 GWh. Looking forward, the International Energy Agency (IEA) expects global installed storage capacity to expand by 56% in the next 5 years to reach over 270 GW by 2026.

Why is energy storage important in the EU?

It can also facilitate the electrification of different economic sectors, notably buildings and transport. The main energy storage method in the EU is by far 'pumped hydro' storage, but battery storage projects are rising. A variety of new technologies to store energy are also rapidly developing and becoming increasingly market-competitive.

Why should EU countries consider the 'consumer-producer' role of energy storage?

It addresses the most important issues contributing to the broader deployment of energy storage. EU countries should consider the double 'consumer-producer' role of storage by applying the EU electricity regulatory framework and by removing barriers, including avoiding double taxation and facilitating smooth permitting procedures.