Long-duration storage energy projects attract $58 bn in investment

Azelio energy storage

Long-duration storage energy (LDES) projects have attracted more than $58 billion in commitments made by governments and companies since 2019.

These projects would lead to the installation of 57 gigawatts (GW) of LDES – the equivalent of three times the global energy-storage capacity deployed in 2022, according to analysis report from Wood Mackenzie.

Projects representing $30 billion are either under construction or in operation. Most long-duration energy storage technologies are still nascent, and technology developers will struggle to scale cost-effectively before 2030.

“Long-duration energy storage technology, with longer durations of 8 to approx. 100 hours, holds great promise as a low-cost solution to enable a grid with more renewable sources,” Kevin Shang, Senior Research Analyst at Wood Mackenzie, said.

Emerging LDES technologies face technical, financial, and business barriers to enable them to gain broader deployment, reduce costs and prove economic value against Combined Cycle Gas Turbines paired with Carbon Capture and Storage, modular nuclear reactors, or green hydrogen fueled power plants. Currently, pumped hydro storage is the only LDES technology deployed on a large-scale and will continue to dominate the market until 2030.