Energy storage technologies hold tremendous potential to help stabilize, regulate, and balance the flow of electricity through the power grid, according to the research firm.

Research analyst Anissa Dehamna said: “The energy storage market is beginning to take off in various ancillary services segments, with a number of new projects coming online. In the early years of this market, a few key applications including frequency regulation and spinning reserves will represent the majority of the activity.

“Although there is a great deal of discussion within the industry about ‘stacking’ applications, there are really only a handful of applications that benefit from the regulatory structures currently in place. Therefore, until markets ‘catch up’ and recognize the value of the performance characteristics of ESS, a select few applications will drive the market.”

Ms Dehamna adds that likewise, in the initial period of adoption, the ESS for ancillary services market will be limited to regions with suitable market structures, primarily deregulated electricity markets.

The research firm forecasts that the key regions will be North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific, particularly for frequency regulation, load following, spinning reserves, and short-duration renewables integration. Key technologies for these ancillary services include flywheels, pumped hydro storage, compressed air energy storage, and battery technologies such as lithium ion, sodium sulfur, and advanced lead-acid batteries.

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