L R AS Published on Monday 7 December 2020 - n° 343 - Categories:storage, power plant storage

The evolution of energy storage in Europe

The multiple applications of large-scale energy storage are beginning to be exploited in European countries. The European energy storage industry has experienced remarkable growth over the last decade, from 9 MW of projects announced in 2010 to a total of 5,700 MW in 2020. Of these projects, approximately 1.7 GW are operational, while the remaining 4 GW are either announced or under construction.

The rise and fall of the frequency control windfall Frequency control has provided lucrative revenues by using the capacity of batteries to respond immediately to demand.

In Western Europe, the 3 GW of frequency control reserves (called Frequency Containment Reserves, or FCRs) are purchased jointly by six countries on a common platform. FCRs are auctioned on a daily basis.

For each country, the required frequency reserve is based on the ratio between the annual national generation (in MWh) and the total annual generation in the European synchronous zone. The supply targets vary slightly each week depending on the needs of the transmission system operator (TSO) and the production of previous years. In fact, 30% of each country's reserve must be of national origin and exports to the other members of the FCR cooperation are limited to a maximum of between 100 MW and 30% of each capacity block.

Revenues from this service have only been declining. The megawatt was worth €26 in 2015. It was worth only €5 in 2020), which is no longer profitable.

Energy storage The frequency reserve auctions have been modified several times to keep pace with demand. The most significant event is the sharp decline in market revenues, as prices have fallen from an average of €18/MW/h in 2017 to as low as €5/MW/h in early 2020. This fall in prices makes a new evolution of the market necessary. It is crucial to ensure the sustainability of projects through multiple alternative sources of income.

To read the full article (eight pages): https://solar-media.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/Pubs/PVTP24/Europe%E2%80%99s%20energy%20storage%20transformation.pdf

https://www.pv-tech.org/guest-blog/europes-energy-storage-transformation

PV Tech of 2 December

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