What is the European Commission doing about energy storage?

The European Commission in 2020 published a study on energy storage, which summarized some previous studies and reports, explored current and potential energy storage markets in Europe, and set out policy and regulatory recommendations for energy storage.

How much energy storage capacity does the EU need?

These studies point to more than 200 GW and 600 GW of energy storage capacity by 2030 and 2050 respectively (from roughly 60 GW in 2022, mainly in the form of pumped hydro storage). The EU needs a strong, sustainable, and resilient industrial value chain for energy-storage technologies.

How much energy storage will Europe have in 2022?

Many European energy-storage markets are growing strongly, with 2.8 GW (3.3 GWh) of utility-scale energy storage newly deployed in 2022, giving an estimated total of more than 9 GWh. Looking forward, the International Energy Agency (IEA) expects global installed storage capacity to expand by 56% in the next 5 years to reach over 270 GW by 2026.

Is Europe ready for a 20 kWh battery energy storage system?

From ESS News EUPD Research is generally optimistic about the European market for residential battery energy storage systems (BESS) with up to 20 kWh capacity. According to their “Electrical Energy Storage Report Europe”, the Bonn-based analysts expect strong demand this year.

What percentage of Europe's energy storage capacity is pumped hydro?

However, despite an exponential growth in Europe’s battery energy storage capacity, which reached 36 gigawatt-hours in 2023, pumped hydro still accounted for 90 percent of the electricity storage capacity in the European Union that year.

Why is European energy storage important?

This is particularly important in the context of EU energy security and the transition away from fossil fuels for both environmental and geopolitical reasons. To help track this growing industry, the European Union has created a comprehensive database of the European energy storage technologies and facilities.