Energy storage projects bring benefits to the government

How does the federal government support energy storage technology?

The federal government has driven the technical development of energy storage technologies and incentivized developers through financial support of early demonstration projects, improving market rules, and a series of grant programs.

How can energy storage technology improve the energy grid?

The U.S. electricity grid connects more than 11,000 power plants with around 158 million residential, commercial, and other consumers. Energy storage technologies have the potential to enable several improvements to the grid, such as reducing costs and improving reliability. They could also enable the growth of solar and wind energy generation.

What are the benefits of energy storage technologies?

Energy storage technologies—such as batteries, flywheels, compressed air, and pumped hydroelectric power—have several potential benefits.1 For example, the ability to store energy—especially for several hours or longer—could reduce costs, increase the electricity grid’s reliability, and improve its ability to recover from disruptions.

How can the federal government support long-duration energy storage?

The federal government could target research and funding to support longer-duration energy storage development, demonstration, and deployment. New utility-scale battery reuse and recycling policies could help enable a system that allows for long life, high performance, and the recovery of products and materials.

Why do we invest in energy storage?

Our investment in energy storage evolves with our grid, creating long-term benefit and reliability for years to come. Energy storage is a critical hub for the entire grid, augmenting resources from wind, solar and hydro, to nuclear and fossil fuels, to demand side resources and system efficiency assets.

What are the benefits of increasing energy storage capacity?

• Charging. Increasing energy storage capacity could allow for increased use of variable renewable electricity generation technologies. Potential benefits include the reduction of greenhouse gases and other emissions because of reductions in fossil fuel plants.