UK – up to 24GW of long duration energy storage needed by 2035

Approximately half of UK’s 2035 energy storage requirements will be long duration, Aurora Energy Research reports.

In a new study for storage and other players in the UK’s energy sector, the Oxford-based consultancy finds that up to 46GW of energy storage will be required to manage renewable intermittency to achieve the net zero emission target for the power sector by 2035.

Of this, up to 22GW is of short duration, up to 4 hours, with the balance of longer duration, up to weeks and months with 40% of that in the 8-16-hour range. This amounts to eight times the current long duration storage installed capacity – 2.8GW of pumped hydro, which has been in place since 1984.

The study highlights requirements for long duration storage as managing periods with an excess or deficit of renewable generation in a net zero world. As an example, it refers to helping to reduce curtailment of Scottish wind generation, which could reach almost 30GW by 2035 and 45GW by 2050

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Overall Aurora estimates that as much as 38GW of storage is required to redistribute excess renewable generation.

The study points to seven long duration storage technologies that are in the spotlight to be commercially deployable in the near term, in addition to pumped hydro, which is the only one currently fully market ready.

These are lithium-ion batteries, liquid air, flow batteries, compressed air, gravitational, molten salt and hydrogen to power, with each at different stages of intermediate commercial readiness and locational flexibility, and able to fulfil niche system requirements.

Other findings are that long duration storage could result in up to a 10Mt/year reduction in power sector carbon emissions by 2035 and that total system costs could be reduced by £1.13 billion (US$1.5 billion) corresponding to an average annual household bill reduction of £26.

Long duration storage also could reduce the country’s reliance on gas in the power sector by up to 50TWhth in 2035.

The study report comments that the need for long duration storage has been recognised by policymakers but at present, high upfront costs and long lead times combined with a lack of revenue certainty and missing market signals leads to under investment, resulting in higher power sector costs and emissions.

Policy support could be provided through direct support mechanisms or via other market reforms to strengthen market signals, with a ‘cap & floor mechanism’ the best positioned to support deployment.

“The UK’s net zero strategy has accelerated the deployment of wind and solar, and this has resulted in a large requirement for long duration electricity storage to balance the intermittent renewables,” comments Felix Chow-Kambitsch, Head of Commissioned Projects, Western Europe at Aurora Energy Research.

“Long duration energy storage provides a valuable contribution to system security and operability in a high renewables energy system. In addition to providing low carbon firm capacity, the technologies also provide a wide range of balancing and ancillary services to help manage the electricity network.”