GEMS software from Greensmith Energy, a Wärtsilä company, will be utilized to help realise 2.4 MW/2.4MWh energy storage system test bed that CW Group is realising on behalf of Singapore's Energy Market Authority (EMA) and SP Group, a leading energy utility in Asia Pacific. The facility is due to be fully operational during the latter part of 2018.
Seeking to complement fossil power plants, South Australia has invited bids from investors in energy storage and bioenergy to share a $150 million fund. The tender is part of the government's wider $550 million energy plan that will see the world’s largest battery being built, and additional flexible gas power capacity. Applications for the $150 million fund close on September 28.
Aug 14 – GE Renewable Energy has booked a turnkey contract with Star Pumped Storage Ltd for the 344 MW Kokhav Hayarden hydro pumped storage station, the second to be installed in Israel. GE Renewable Energy is responsible for the design, manufacture, supply and installation of all electro-mechanical and hydro-mechanical equipment as well as complete balance of plant for the two 172 MW pumped-storage units. The project will be executed by a consortium led by Chinese EPC SinoHydro.
June 29 – Following this week’s working meeting in Belgrade between Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller and Dusan Bajatovic, director general of Srbijagas, the Gazprom head has signed a roadmap with Serbia’s Minister of Mining and Energy, Aleksandar Antic on how to jointly expand the Serbian gas transmission system. The expansion of the Banatski Dvor underground gas storage facility in Northern Serbia was also discussed. A memorandum, signed early June 2017, stipulates that the UGS facility's capacities will be increased from 450 to 750 million cubic meters. Serbia is a transit country for Russian pipeline gas exports which first reach Turkey and then get transported onwards to Austria and Western Europe.
Though Centrica CEO Ian Conn told the BBC this morning that closure of its 3.4 Bcm Rough gas storage facility will not destabilize Britain’s gas supply – given the possibility to import LNG and source gas from Norway and the EU through several interconnectors – some analysts see it differently. Commenting on Centrica’s move, Wood Mackenzie analyst Graham Freedman said the decision not reopen Rough storage comes as “no surprise” and makes “good commercial sense” for Centrica. However, he believes the implications on the UK's future security of gas supply “will no doubt lead to a UK Government review of its position, particularly in light of current Brexit negotiations.”
June 9 – Car manufacturer Renault-Nissan is finalising plans to build a 100-MW power storage plant in Europe, based on disused and recycled car batteries. Similar to rival Tesla’s electricity storage arm, the latest move of Renault-Nissan indicates the company’s aspiration to cultivate a second-hand battery market. The projected power storage facility, if built, would have enough capacity to meet the electricity needs of 120,000 homes. The carmaker confirmed the news, stating “We're working with The Mobility House on several programs including a major energy storage project that is currently still in the study phase.”
Utility-scale capacity provided by various energy storage technologies and renewables beyond wind, solar and hydro, collectively accounted for 4% of the electricity generating capacity in the United States in 2016. Latest EIA figures shows a small, but growing trend towards demand-side response – vital tools for balancing electricity markets the United States, and elsewhere.
Italy’s state-owned utility Enel has bought the Tynemouth stand-alone battery storage project in the North East of England from Element Power for approximately 20 million euros. The construction-ready project is an “investment opportunity,” according to Enel said, as it is supported by a 4-year Enhanced Frequency Response (EFR) contract to provide grid balancing services.
May 11 – Advanced energy storage systems market is estimated to be worth $15.96 billion by 2020, growing at a CAGR of 4.4% during the forecast period, according to MarketsandMarket estimates. Technologies included pumped hydro energy storage as well as battery power storage. The dominant manufacturers – such as Toshiba, ABB, Siemens, Voith, Alstom and Dominion Energy – are trying to penetrate developing economies to grab a bigger market share.
Worldwide markets for battery energy storage systems (BESS) are expected to grow exponentially due to its grid, generation, and consumer-side applications – reaching more than 14 GW by 2020, up from about 1.5 GW in 2015, according to GlobalData analysis. The United States is leading the BESS market followed by Japan, Germany and China.
April 18 – The ‘1414 Degrees prototype’ of the patented thermal energy storage system (TESS) has been built in the Tonsley Park Innovation Precinct in Adelaide. Inside the unit elements heat silica in receptacles to its melting point, 1414 degrees Celsius, where it has “a large energy capacity associated with every unit of silica,” he says. The elements require energy to get sufficiently heated up and supply spikes from renewable energy sources would fit the bill.