Global Solar Energy Storage Outlook 2023

Solar energy, is the greatest source of potential energy on earth. However, only a fraction of the potential energy in sunlight that reaches the Earth is captured and used to generate electricity.

In 2023, energy storage will be close to 100 GWh, of which power plants will be close to 65 GWh, industrial and commercial will be about 12 GWh, and residential will be 23 GWh.

In Asian- Pacific region, China will have a total of 25 GWh in 2023, with 3 GWh for industrial and commercial sectors. In total, Japan has about 3 GWh, 1.5 GWh for households, and 0.5 GWh for industrial and commercial use. In addition to China and Japan, the Asia- Pacific region has a total of 2 GWh, including 1.5 GWh of power plants and 0.5 GWh of industrial and commercial enterprises.

Japan expects to become one of the most promising grid-scale storage markets in the Asia- Pacific region, in order to achieve the goals of energy transition and liberalization of the electricity market structure. Japan's per capita electricity consumption is twice the Asia- Pacific average. In the coming decades, Japan will mainly use electricity from solar and wind power facilities, and the price of oil an liquefied natural gas is expected to fall as a result.

In European region, the total of solar energy storage is 24 GWh in 2023, with 16 GWh for residential use and 5 GWh for commercial and industrial use. In the UK, there are a total of 2 GWh, 1 GWh of power stations, and 1 GWh of residential use, with less industry and commerce.

At this stage, the installed capacity of energy storage in Europe continues to grow at a high rate, and there is still broad room for improving the penetration rate. High electricity prices and policy subsidies are the most important reasons driving the development of energy storage in Europe.

The geopolitical conflict between Russia and Ukraine has exacerbated the energy crisis in Europe, with the flow of natural gas from Russia to Europe sharply reduced, and multiple rounds of heat waves and severe droughts in the summer have superimposed on European natural gas and electricity prices to new highs. High electricity prices are bound to stimulate demand for energy storage.

Now let's turn to American region. In the United States, there are a total o 36 GWh, 2 GWh of industrial and commercial, 3 GWh of residential and 31 GWh of power plants, The U. S. is the world's largest and fastest- growing energy storage market.

The main driver for the rapid development of C&I energy storage and residential energy storage in the United States in 2023 are as follows:

Affected by geopolitical conflict factors, the energy self- sufficiency rate is low. The continuous rise in electricity prices has promoted the rapid increase in the penetration rate of household storage.

Most of the buildings in the United States are low- rise independent buildings, which are easy to install.

The installed capacity of energy storage in the United States is mainly distributed in areas with a large number of photovoltaic installations, while California, Florida and Texas, which are short of electricity, are the top. California and Texas are major market for electrochemical energy storage in the United States.

 In the Middle East and Central Africa region, 3 GWh in the Middle East and North Africa, 2.5 GWh for power plants, and 0.5 GWh for residential use. For the Middle East and North Africa, the demand for off- grid/microgrid energy storage applications is gradually increasing, and these applications are mainly reflected in three countries, Oman, Lebanon and Egypt.

Due to geopolitical risks an other factors, the demand for user- side energy storage is concentrated in regions such as Lebanon, Yemen, Syria and Iraq. Residential energy storage is widely used in Egypt, Jordan and the United Arab Emiratews, and the deployment of residential energy storage systems is more for energy security and maximizing the utilization rate of photovoltaic power generation.

1.5 GWh in Latin America, 0.8 GWh for power plants, and 0.5 GWh for industrial and commercial purposes, Brazil, Mexico, and Chile have a large installed capacity of new energy and have a certain demand for energy storage on the power supply side. Brazil's energy market is complex, with conventional hydropower currently accounting for nearly 65T followed by gas, wind (15GW) and PV (7.4GW).

Mexico and Chile have higher electricity prices and bills, and the economic benefits of residential, commercial and industrial energy storage are obvious. Colombia has a small installed capacity of new energy, with even geographical distribution, and there is a potential demand for distributed energy storage.

What are the challenges we face with global solar energy storage?

The installation cost per kilowatt of energy storage systems is relatively high, and there is a lack of more storage- related regulatory rules and "permits".

The current pricing of electricity energy and services is not economically viable.

Competition between many technologies and projects (e.g., demand response, smart grids, distributed generation, renewable energy, etc.)

Coordination among multiple stakeholders, limited storage- related engineering standards, evaluation methods, and tools.

Emerging power markets (extensive new electrics and increasing emphasis on intermittent renewable energy generation, etc.)

Market politicians, regulators, an policy makers are increasingly interested in energy storage.

Existing and future incentives (taxes, regulations an subsidies) for the installation of energy storage systems.

Ther is an increasing use of demand response, with an emphasis on modular distributed energy resources.

The emphasis on reducing air emissions in the electricity supply, reducing fuel use, and accelerating innovation in energy storage technology.