Irish group joins calls for European Union battery boost

An Irish group will join European energy storage specialists in asking the EU Commission to back the development of batteries to support renewable electricity.

Power grids use batteries to store wind- and solar-generated electricity to help balance supply with demand for energy.

Bobby Smith, head of Energy Storage Ireland, is one of several figures from across the industry to have signed a letter to the commission calling for measures to support the use of batteries across European electricity networks.

The organisations welcome the RepowerEU initiative to speed up renewable electricity development but stress that batteries will be key to integrating these technologies into national power grids.

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Their letter argues that batteries can cut homes’ and businesses’ electricity costs by increasing supply networks’ stability and easing congestion.

Renewable electricity depends on wind speeds and the sun, so is not always available at times when it is most needed, or too much of it can be available during periods of low demand.

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Batteries level out these gaps and also cut the need to “curtail” or halt some renewable generators from producing power, allowing grids to provide more cheap renewable electricity at times of high demand.

According to the industry groups who have signed the letter, this cuts wholesale electricity costs by limiting price volatility, easing the burden on families and employers.

“Grid connections for energy storage should be prioritised,” they say. The groups add a call on the EU to remove barriers to adding storage to national networks, including fees, levies and taxes.

Other supporters include Fluence Energy, which is working on several storage projects with State-owned ESB, the first of which will be launched at the Aghada power plant in Cork this week.

Representatives of national bodies such as the Spanish and German energy storage industries, along with academics and businesses, have also signed the open letter, due to be published on Thursday.