A new report from KPMG and REA offers hope that decentralised energy storage solutions could be taken up by households and businesses.
The report shows that the reduction in costs means storage could become economically viable for homeowners that have an existing feed-in-tariff for solar panels.
It found that large scale grid projects are already financially viable, though barriers to securing funding may remain, and that the cost reductions could cut the payback time for grid-scale battery storage to just six years.
The REA is calling on the UK government to remove regulatory barriers and introduce an energy storage definition in the current energy bill.
The report sets out how energy storage is a valuable but missing component in the move towards a decentralised and consumer focused energy system.
Cost reductions have bought forward the timeframe for their deployment through technical improvements.
REA Chief Executive Dr Nina Skorupska said: “2016 is going to be the breakthrough year for energy storage and the growth of decentralised energy. The industry must draw a line under the turbulence of the past year and look to the future.
“This report shows that storage is already upon us and the cost of renewable technologies are coming down and many companies are looking forward to the post-subsidy business model.”
Image: Solar PV (MorgueFile)
