Based on the lithium-ion battery technology that Mercedes-Benz has used to power 80,000 hybrid and fully electric vehicles since 2012, Mercedes Benz residential storage batteries are now ready for sale to customers in the UK. Up to 8 battery modules, each with a capacity of 2.5 kWh, can be combined to create an energy storage system with a capacity of 20 kWh. Industrial applications have even greater scalability.

Using an energy storage system from Mercedes-Benz Energy, households with their own solar energy systems can store surplus power with virtually no losses. By combining renewable energy sources with a battery storage unit, households can explore the potential of their own “private energy revolution,” as Mercedes-Benz put it.

Prices for residential systems depend on the components of a customized package selected by the customer. A typical system consists of solar panels, a battery inverter, an energy management system, and the Mercedes-Benz energy storage unit itself, plus the cost of installation.

“A network of qualified partners and distributors makes planning and installation easy. At present, Mercedes-Benz Energy is working in the UK with distributors such as Alternergy, Innasol and Wind & Sun, as well as with partners who offer a complete system installation, such as Solar Frontier,” Mercedes notes. “The latter’s network of qualified installers can advise customers on-site, make offers on all components and manage all planning and installation. Stationary battery storage systems are generally installed together with solar panels.”

But do people really want Mercedes-Benz batteries in their garage? Apparently.

“There is tremendous interest in our energy storage units in the UK. We’re very pleased to be able to offer Mercedes-Benz Energy Storage Home to customers here,” said Marc Thomas, Managing Director of Mercedes-Benz Energy.

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Since President Trump’s election to office, his administration has made it very clear that building and restoring infrastructure is at the top of their “to-do” list.  The Energy Storage Association and their supporters are looking to turn Trump’s priority into an opportunity for their agenda.  To create this opportunity, the ESA, and other supporting organizations, are turning to Congress for assistance.

Attempts to gain support and assistance from the U.S. Federal Government have been taking place since the Inauguration.  The executive director of the ESA, Matt Roberts, has been expressing his desire to capitalize on energy storage opportunities since February.  The Trump administration has appeared to be receptive of the ideas and suggestions that energy storage advocates are making.

In the meantime, the ESA has been communicating with Congress about their goals for Trump’s infrastructure agenda.  Energy storage advocates are specifically interested in government plans to enhance grid technology and infrastructure.  Supporters believe that energy storage systems will address demand response issues and grid reliability.  Storage systems are said to increase efficiency and reliability for grid technology and generation resources.  These opinions were submitted to Congress in a letter that detailed several other benefits that advocates feel could enhance grid infrastructure.  From a financial perspective, the costs of energy storage systems are attractive.  Analysts report that costs have decreased by 30% in one year.

Gaining support from Congress could help the energy storage organizations involved to capitalize on infrastructure opportunities, but the support has the potential to assist the energy storage industry in other ways as well.  The energy storage industry is in need of legislation to allow businesses and organizations to grow.  At this point in time, industry growth is difficult because of the lack of government legislation.  Many feel that the energy storage industry will experience success in this area because of the bipartisan support surrounding energy storage.  Both Republicans and Democrats can see the benefits of this cost saving, efficiency increasing technology when implemented on the grids.

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LG Chem has formally launched its series of residential battery systems for the North American market.

This is the first foray for LG Chem into the North American residential market following successful completion of UL certification and follows successful implementation of the energy storage systems in Europe and Asia, especially in Germany, Italy, the U.K., Japan and Australia.

The North American residential energy storage systems work for both indoor and outdoor installation and come in two voltage options: A low-voltage 48V version and a high-voltage 400V version. LG says the 400V storage is compatible with SolarEdge’s StorEdge single inverter for both solar systems and storage. LG Chem plans to offer additional inverter compatibility options later this year.

LG Chem is partnering with Sunrun, an energy storage provider, to supply the LG Chem RESU systems. Sunrun has already installed initial systems in both Hawaii and California and LG says it is in negotiations to provide coverage for the systems to all U.S. states and Canadian provinces.

“LG Chem’s entry into the North American residential battery market is based on much planning, product development and system testing,” says Peter Gibson, head of ESS sales for LG Chem in North America. “Customers can now enhance the benefits of their residential solar systems by using our batteries to maximize consumption of solar energy, and to use the batteries as a dependable source of energy during grid interruptions.”

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As part of its REV program, New York regulators recently issued an order on new structures for compensating distributed energy resources.

The order’s main focus is on community solar projects, but could eventually encompass the integration of standalone energy storage and small, local clean energy resources.

REV has already spurred a variety of projects, including a 1 MW, 4 MWh demonstration storage project in New York City being developed by Consolidated Edison in partnership with NRG Energy.

The state has also been funding other types of pilot projects as part of REV. Last month NYSERDA announced awards of $11 million for 11 microgrid projects in the state. In the first phase of that program 83 municipalities were awarded $100,000 to conduct feasibility studies for microgrids.

For the energy storage awards, NYSERDA will select the best projects to submit follow-up proposals for feasibility studies or for full demonstration projects. Initial concept papers will be accepted through March 1, 2020, or until all funds are committed.

NYSERDA is looking for papers that highlight technologies that are already commercially available and have the potential for replication throughout the state. The proposed projects must be able to demonstrate how they can support the state’s energy goals, including renewable generation and greenhouse gas reduction.

New York is targeting that 50% of the state’s electricity to come from renewable energy sources by 2030.

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San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) has signed contracts for five new local battery storage facilities for a total of 83.5 MW.

According to the California utility, the four-hour energy storage facilities would be like having batteries from more than 5,500 all-electric, long-range vehicles at the ready. All five battery projects will be able to store supplies of solar, wind and other traditional sources and release it when energy is in high demand, the company adds.

In addition, SDG&E has signed a contract to add a 4.5 MW demand response program, and the company has submitted all six contracts to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) for approval.

If approved, two of the five lithium-ion battery energy storage facilities will be owned and operated by SDG&E to enhance regional energy reliability while maximizing renewable energy use.

AES Energy Storage will construct a 40 MW storage facility, building on its successful 37.5 MW of deployments in Escondido and El Cajon, Calif. A 30 MW facility will be built in Miramar by Renewable Energy Systems Americas Inc. The other storage projects, totaling 13.5 MW, will be owned by third parties, including Powin Energy, Enel Green Power North America and Advanced Microgrid Solutions.

“These projects will add more flexibility to the system and help us to ensure reliability while providing greater levels of clean energy to all of our local communities,” says Emily Shults, SDG&E’s vice president of energy procurement. “By building these projects, SDG&E will remain at the forefront of helping the state achieve its bold clean-energy and carbon-emission targets.”

The CPUC has set targets for investor-owned utilities to procure large amounts of energy storage by 2020, including 165 MW by SDG&E. With these five new projects, SDG&E says it is on track to meet this goal. The new facilities are expected to come online between December 2019 and late 2021.

The utility notes that the proposed demand response program, to be run by OhmConnect, will also add flexibility to the system. Beginning in early 2018, OhmConnect will request industrial and commercial customers who have enrolled in the demand response program to reduce energy usage within 20 minutes of being called during certain days and hours. This process will be conducted by the California Independent System Operator and/or SDG&E as needed.

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Eos is the first company to accept orders below $100 per usable kWh for a complete DC battery system including battery modules, battery management system, and outdoor-rated enclosure. The company’s price-cap guarantee ensures that future purchases will receive the lower contracted price or any future price for an equivalent volume purchased the same year. It is also offering up to 20-year performance guarantees at additional cost to optimise capacity under a wide range of applications and use cases.

“These price points correspond to a levelised cost of energy of approximately $50-60 per MWh for storage, roughly 30 percent lower than the lowest projected cost for any competing storage system” said Jim Hughes, Eos Chairman of the Board. “With these economics, Eos will become the default solution for new peaking capacity and will enable a dispatchable renewable energy product that outcompetes conventional power generation.”

The Eos Aurora is a best-fit utility-grade solution for multi-hour, high-throughput applications such as locational capacity, peak shaving, and renewable integration. integrates the company’s proprietary zinc hybrid cathode Znyth battery into an outdoor-rated, plug-and-play Energy Stack that enables rapid installation and reduces cost throughout the project lifecycle. According to Eos CEO Michael Oster, the company’s approach is aimed at providing a significant and sustainable cost advantage over lithium ion while delivering a battery that is inherently safer, longer life, lower maintenance, and more tolerant of extreme operating conditions.

The Eos Aurora has no moving parts and employs widely available materials and highly commoditised manufacturing equipment and processes. Eos recently announced a manufacturing and assembly partnership with NY-based Environment One Corporation (E/One). The two companies will be moving production to a dedicated facility in upstate New York, creating 80 high-tech jobs as the companies reach a production rate of 400 MWh per year in 2017. 

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Edison International’s utility unit said it has completed the first-of-its kind battery storage and natural gas power systems in Southern California that will help the region backstop increasing amounts of renewable energy and cope with potential shortages after a historic gas leak.

Southern California Edison, General Electric Co. and Wellhead Power Solutions partnered to install 10-megawatt lithium-ion batteries at two of the utility’s gas generators, Rosemead, California-based Edison said Monday in a statement. The plants are designed to fire up during periods of peak demand. The batteries, which can provide instant power while gas turbines ramp up, are expected to reduce fuel use and lead to emission reductions of at least 60 percent, Edison said.

“The new system will help SCE better utilize the resources on the grid, provide enhanced reliability, reduce environmental impact, and reduce cost for our operations and for our customers,” Southern California Edison President Ron Nichols said in an emailed statement.

The installation comes after a months-long leak crippled the state’s largest natural gas storage field near Los Angeles, raising concerns about potential energy shortages. In addition, the state has mandated that utilities get half of their power from renewable sources by 2030. Batteries have been viewed as helping accommodate more green energy by helping utilities manage the unpredictable output from wind and solar farms.

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SAN DIEGO, April 19, 2017 – Today, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) announced that it has signed contracts for five new local battery storage facilities for a total of 83.5 megawatts (MW).  These four-hour energy storage facilities would be like having batteries from more than 5,500 all-electric, long-range vehicles at the ready. In addition, the company signed a contract to add a 4.5 MW demand response program. SDG&E has submitted all six contracts to the California Public Utilities Commission for approval.

If approved, two of the five lithium-ion battery energy storage facilities will be owned and operated by SDG&E to enhance regional energy reliability while maximizing renewable energy use. AES Energy Storage will construct a 40-MW storage facility, building on its successful 37.5 MWs of deployments in Escondido and El Cajon. A 30-MW facility will be built in Miramar by Renewable Energy Systems Americas Inc. (RES). The other storage projects totaling 13.5 MW will be owned by third parties including Powin Energy, Enel through its U.S. subsidiary Enel Green Power North America, and Advanced Microgrid Solutions and constructed in Escondido, Poway and San Juan Capistrano.

“These projects will add more flexibility to the system and help us to ensure reliability while providing greater levels of clean energy to all of our local communities,” said Emily Shults, SDG&E’s vice president of energy procurement. “By building these projects, SDG&E will remain at the forefront of helping the state achieve its bold clean-energy and carbon-emission targets.”

All five of the battery projects can store supplies of solar, wind and other traditional sources and release it when energy is in high demand.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has set targets for investor-owned utilities to procure large amounts of energy storage by 2020, including 165 MW by SDG&E.  With these five new projects, SDG&E is on track to meet this goal. The new facilities are expected to come on line between December 2019 and late 2021.

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About three years ago inside a sprawling factory southeast of Pittsburgh, a promising battery startup was churning out some of the first of its ultra-simple, nontoxic, low-cost batteries made from a combination of salt water, carbon and manganese oxide.

With $180 million in funding from some of Silicon Valley’s best-known names, including billionaire Bill Gates, it looked like the batteries could be some of the first with an alternative type of chemistry to provide low-cost storage for the power grid, buildings, remote machinery and clean energy farms.

But that vision didn’t quite pan out. Just a couple of months ago, the battery maker, Aquion Energy, filed for bankruptcy protection, laid off almost all of its workers and ceased selling its stackable energy storage devices. As the company looks for a buyer, it’s also been hit with a lawsuit from former workers who say they were let go without proper notice, and it has been the target of critics who question why the firm was still struggling after receiving state and federal support.

It’s a familiar tale for battery industry watchers. From big companies like A123 Systems, to smaller ones like EnerVault and Imergy, companies developing new types of battery chemistries have faced difficult markets, major technical hurdles, and long sales cycles.

In recent years, however, the dramatically dropping cost of lithium-ion batteries has become chief among the concerns. While some predicted these batteries would become cheaper over time, most didn’t estimate that the prices would go so low so fast — making the outlook for alternative battery chemistries a lot murkier.

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