the best solutions for China’s geographical and
meteorological conditions.
Fourth, the development of new energy technologies should be closely coordinated with
smart grid, energy storage and Internet + (Energy Internet) technologies. China
should: (i) regard the smart grid as an important
tool to promote renewable energy development
and use and, therefore, a major component of the
future power grid. The smart grid would facilitate
the integration of renewable power, including
distributed power and large-scale wind farms;
(ii) use the Internet to revolutionise energy production and consumption, improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions. Information
sharing between upstream and downstream
businesses should be strengthened to coordinate
operations between power plants and grids. Both
non-fossil and fossil energy should be used to
generate power; and (iii) energy storage is a key
technology and an important means to integrate
new energy in the power system, because it can
mitigate voltage fluctuations and stabilise the
grid. Research and projects in and outside China
show that large-scale energy storage is an
important solution to connect new energy to the
grid and facilitate its use.
6.3 Energy Storage
6.3.1 Current Developments
and Trends in Global
Energy Storage
Technologies
(1) Current technology developments
After more than a decade of development, energy
storage technologies are beginning to take off.
Statistics up to 2017 show that the cumulative
installed capacity of global energy storage projects was 169.2 GW. Pumped storage and electrochemical energy storage accounted for the
largest share of installed capacity at 97% and
1.3% (ranking No. 3) respectively. The installed
capacity of electrochemical energy storage
projects worldwide was 94.4 MW, up 551%
year-on-year and 50% month-on-month.
The UK, Australia, the USA and China markets see rapid growth. In 2017, the UK, China
and Japan were the top three countries in terms of
installed capacity. Nearly all these projects were
deployed in grid-connected centralised renewable energy and ancillary services. Australia, the
USA and the UK were the top three in terms of
the installed capacity of projects planned or
under construction. These projects would likewise mainly be deployed in grid-connected centralised renewable energy and ancillary services,
accounting for 91% of the total capacity of such
projects.
By application, up to 2017, the installed
capacity for ancillary services was 31.5 MW,
accounting for 33% of the total installed capacity
of energy storage projects worldwide. These
projects were located mainly in the UK, Germany and Belgium, for example, those in Bristol
and Darlington in England. They became part of
the European balancing market in the form of
independent energy producers or in joint operation with gas power plants to provide primary
frequency modulation.
In terms of current energy storage market
capacity, pumped storage remains dominant
(98% market share), although electrochemical
energy storage is rapidly gaining market share. In
the global market, the top three electrochemical
energy storage technologies are lithium-ion,
sodium-sulphur
and
lead-acid
batteries,
accounting for 53%, 29% and 9% of the total
market respectively. In China, the top three
electrochemical energy storage technologies are
lithium-ion, lead-acid and flow batteries, which
account for 57%, 28% and 10% of the total
market respectively.
Mainstream energy storage technologies
comprise four categories: physical, chemical,
electromagnetic and others. Physical energy
storage refers mainly to pumped storage, compressed air energy storage and flywheel energy
storage. Chemical energy storage technologies
are developing fast and attracting the most
attention, mainly in lead-acid, lithium-ion, flow,
Special Report 3: A Study of China’s Technology Revolution
347
meteorological conditions.
Fourth, the development of new energy technologies should be closely coordinated with
smart grid, energy storage and Internet + (Energy Internet) technologies. China
should: (i) regard the smart grid as an important
tool to promote renewable energy development
and use and, therefore, a major component of the
future power grid. The smart grid would facilitate
the integration of renewable power, including
distributed power and large-scale wind farms;
(ii) use the Internet to revolutionise energy production and consumption, improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions. Information
sharing between upstream and downstream
businesses should be strengthened to coordinate
operations between power plants and grids. Both
non-fossil and fossil energy should be used to
generate power; and (iii) energy storage is a key
technology and an important means to integrate
new energy in the power system, because it can
mitigate voltage fluctuations and stabilise the
grid. Research and projects in and outside China
show that large-scale energy storage is an
important solution to connect new energy to the
grid and facilitate its use.
6.3 Energy Storage
6.3.1 Current Developments
and Trends in Global
Energy Storage
Technologies
(1) Current technology developments
After more than a decade of development, energy
storage technologies are beginning to take off.
Statistics up to 2017 show that the cumulative
installed capacity of global energy storage projects was 169.2 GW. Pumped storage and electrochemical energy storage accounted for the
largest share of installed capacity at 97% and
1.3% (ranking No. 3) respectively. The installed
capacity of electrochemical energy storage
projects worldwide was 94.4 MW, up 551%
year-on-year and 50% month-on-month.
The UK, Australia, the USA and China markets see rapid growth. In 2017, the UK, China
and Japan were the top three countries in terms of
installed capacity. Nearly all these projects were
deployed in grid-connected centralised renewable energy and ancillary services. Australia, the
USA and the UK were the top three in terms of
the installed capacity of projects planned or
under construction. These projects would likewise mainly be deployed in grid-connected centralised renewable energy and ancillary services,
accounting for 91% of the total capacity of such
projects.
By application, up to 2017, the installed
capacity for ancillary services was 31.5 MW,
accounting for 33% of the total installed capacity
of energy storage projects worldwide. These
projects were located mainly in the UK, Germany and Belgium, for example, those in Bristol
and Darlington in England. They became part of
the European balancing market in the form of
independent energy producers or in joint operation with gas power plants to provide primary
frequency modulation.
In terms of current energy storage market
capacity, pumped storage remains dominant
(98% market share), although electrochemical
energy storage is rapidly gaining market share. In
the global market, the top three electrochemical
energy storage technologies are lithium-ion,
sodium-sulphur
and
lead-acid
batteries,
accounting for 53%, 29% and 9% of the total
market respectively. In China, the top three
electrochemical energy storage technologies are
lithium-ion, lead-acid and flow batteries, which
account for 57%, 28% and 10% of the total
market respectively.
Mainstream energy storage technologies
comprise four categories: physical, chemical,
electromagnetic and others. Physical energy
storage refers mainly to pumped storage, compressed air energy storage and flywheel energy
storage. Chemical energy storage technologies
are developing fast and attracting the most
attention, mainly in lead-acid, lithium-ion, flow,
Special Report 3: A Study of China’s Technology Revolution
347