Europe's energy problem isn't green power it's storage

Wind and sunshine often produce more electricity than needed in Germany and parts of Europe. Limited battery storage prevents saving that surplus for later demand. After sunset, natural gas power plants frequently supply the shortfall. Achieving climate neutrality by 2045 requires large-scale storage to keep electricity prices stable and enable a transition to 100% renewable energy. The European Union generates about half its electricity from renewables and has a 2050 climate-neutral goal. Current large-scale storage capacity is about 14 GW. Expansion is accelerating, with 84 GW additional capacity in planning or construction. Lithium-ion battery prices have fallen about 20% per year, and EU forecasts expect costs to halve by 2030 versus 2022. EU storage capacity has increased tenfold since 2022, but meeting climate goals requires another tenfold increase to around 750 GW.

"During the day, when the wind blows and the sun is shining, the amount of electricity available in Germany and some other European countries is often more than is needed. But insufficient battery storage has made it impossible to store that energy for later use. Once the sun goes down, it's often left to natural gas power plants to pick up the slack. That has to change if Germany wants to become climate neutral by 2045."

"Large-scale storage facilities for green power are essential to keeping electricity prices stable and making the transition to 100% renewable energy. The European Union, which has set its own climate-neutral goal for 2050, currently generates around half of its electricity with renewable energy. Across Europe, existing large-scale storage facilities add up to a capacity of about 14 GW, according to data from the European Commission's Joint Research Centre."

"In recent years, that expansion has accelerated dramatically: 84 GW of additional large-scalestorage capacity, representing a sixfold increase, is currently in the planning or construction phases and expected to go online in the next few years. That mirrors a global trend, according to research group Bloomberg New Energy Finance. A recent analysis showed that the strongest growth in large-scale storage facilities is expected in Asia, especially in China and India."

"Part of that rapid growth is down to sinking costs. Over the last few years, the price for lithium-ion batteries has dropped by about 20% every year. By 2030, according to an EU forecast, the cost for batteries is expected to fall by half, compared to 2022 prices. When smaller, private storage systems and large-scale facilities are put together, the capacity in the EU has increased tenfold since 2022. But to meet the bloc's climate goals, that figure would have to increase by another factor of 10, to around 750 GW"

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