Energy Storage

Electricity storage technologies

IVA’s Electricity Crossroads project
 ORDLISTA

AA-CAES – Adiabatic compressed air MW – Megawatt

energy storage
MWh – Megawatt hour
AEC – Alkaline electrolysis cells
m3 – Cubic metre
CAES – Compressed air energy storage
Nm3 – Normal cubic metre
CH4 – Methane gas
NaS – Sodium sulphur
CT – Combustion turbine
UPS – Uninterruptible power supply
DoE – US Department of Energy
PEM – Polymer electrolyte membrane/
EEA – European Economic Area proton exchange membrane

GW – Gigawatt SMES – Superconducting magnetic energy

storage
GWh – Gigawatt hour
VRB – Vanadium redox battery
H2 – Hydrogen gas
Wh – Watt hour
kW – Kilowatt

kWh – Kilowatt hour

© Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences, 2016

P.O. Box 5073, SE-102 42 Stockholm
Tel: +46 (0)8 791 29 00
Fax: +46 (0)8 611 56 23
E-mail: info@iva.se
Web: www.iva.se

IVA-R 488
ISSN: 1102-8254
ISBN: 978-91-7082-919-2

Authors: Anna Nordling, Ronja Englund,

Alexander Hembjer & Andreas Mannberg
Project Manager: Anna Nordling, ÅF
Editor: Camilla Koebe, IVA
Layout: Anna Lindberg & Pelle Isaksson, IVA

This report is also available for download at IVA’s website

www.iva.se
Contents

Summary....................................................................................................................... 4

1. Introduction.................................................................................................................. 5

2. Electrical energy storage................................................................................................ 6

Application.................................................................................................................... 9

3. Energy storage technologies......................................................................................... 11

Pumped hydropower.................................................................................................... 11
Compressed-air energy storage.................................................................................... 12
Batteries....................................................................................................................... 14
Power to gas ................................................................................................................ 17
Flywheels..................................................................................................................... 18
SMES – Superconducting magnetic energy storage........................................................ 19
Supercapacitors............................................................................................................ 19

4. Comparison of different storage technologies.............................................................. 20

5. Appendix..................................................................................................................... 21
Footnotes..................................................................................................................... 21
Literature list............................................................................................................... 22

3
Summary
The need for energy storage is increasing as the pro-
portion of intermittent energy production in the en-
ergy system increases. Different types of storage tech-
nology are needed depending on demand and type
of electricity generation. The most common energy
storage technologies today are pumped hydropower,
batteries, compressed air and flywheels.
The most common drivers and application areas
for energy storage are listed below:
• Price arbitrage
• Balancing energy
• Black-start services
• Stabilising conventional generation
• Island and off-grid storage
• T&D (transmission & distribution) deferral
• Industrial peak shaving
• Residential storage
Different energy storage technologies have different
applications in the energy system. Capacity, cost, en-
ergy density, efficiency level, and technical and eco-
nomic life are factors that determine in which context
the technologies are the most suitable. Pumped hy-
dropower and compressed air, for example, are both
suitable for energy balancing, while batteries are best
suited as reserve power and for over-generation and
off-grid systems. But larger battery units may be used
in the future for other purposes. Geographical condi-
tions are examples of other factors that must be taken
into consideration in applications for pumped hydro-
power and compressed air energy storage (CAES).
It is likely that all of these storage technologies will be
used in some form or other in the future, but the tech-
nology advancing the fastest today is battery technolo-
gy. One reason for this is that batteries can be used on a
small scale in households and vehicles, but they can also
be used on a large scale by combining multiple modules.
Also, the most recent advances in Tesla’s batteries indi-
cate that cost levels will fall faster than expected. Since
batteries can be produced on a small scale, the threshold
for widespread commercialisation is very small.
Pumped hydropower is expected to grow the most in
China and India which have the right geographical con-
ditions to build efficient plants. Other countries need to
consider other unconventional technical pumped hy-
dropower solutions, such as pumping sea/ocean water
and storage in underground caverns.
Compressed air technology will likely be used the
most in the USA where a number of suitable locations
have already been selected for compressed air plants.
Projects are also in the pipeline in the EU where the
first adiabatic compressed air solutions are now being
developed.
Energy storage in the EU at this time is focused on
three different areas: small-scale use, arbitrage and
reduction of capacity peaks1. The drivers for storage
markets in Europe are:
1. Use in microgrids isolated from the grid.2
2. Batteries in combination with solar cells in residential
contexts (mainly in Germany at the moment).3
There are still legal barriers to overcome for energy
storage, and the definition of energy storage and own-
1. Introduction
The electricity system needs to be constantly in balance,
i.e. electricity production and electricity demand need
to be matched every second of the day. In cases where
electricity generation cannot be controlled and does not
match electricity demand, the energy (electricity) needs
to be stored. By being able to store surplus generated elec-
tricity for use later on when demand is higher than sup-
5
ership rules are still unclear. In Sweden, grid compa-
nies are permitted to own their stored energy, but they
can only use it for the purpose of covering grid losses
or to temporarily compensate for power cuts/failures.
In other words: stored energy use is only permitted in
emergencies. An amendment to Sweden’s Electricity
Act (Ellagen) is needed if energy reserves are to be
commercially attractive for grid companies.
Batteries are expected to have a larger share in the
future energy system in Sweden, both in homes and as
part of the future electric-powered transport system.
Other forms of energy storage will be developed in Swe-
den as well, and price trends will determine what these
will be.
ply, the balance in the energy system can be maintained
without constant matching of production and consump-
tion. This report summarises the information in a series
of reports on energy storage. The focus here is energy
storage through mechanical, electrical, electrochemical
and chemical storage. Reports and other sources used in
this report can be found in the literature list.
2. Electrical energy storage
Figure 1: Storage technologies
Storage
technologies

Mechanical Electrical Electrochemical Chemical

Pumped hydropower SMES Lead-acid batteries Hydrogen gas

Compressed air Capacitor Flow batteries Synthetic natural

gas
Flywheel Molten-salt (sodium)
sulphur batteries Other chemicals

Lithium-ion batteries

Other advanced
batteries

Figure 2: Global installed storage capacity, MW.4 Figure 3: Global installed storage capacity in the EEA, MW. 5

200,000 MW Aqueous ion hybrid 0.02 MW 60,000 MW Lead-acid battery 1 MW

Metal air batteries 1 MW Nickel metal 3 MW
Lead carbon batteries 1 MW Flow battery 3 MW
Electrochemical 1,8 MW 50,000 MW Condenser 6 MW
Ultra batteries 7 MW Hybrid battery 8 MW
150,000 MW Hybrid batteries 9 MW Monten salt battery 47 MW
Nickel metal batteries 30 MW Lithium-ion 138 MW
40,000 MW
Gravitation storage 50 MW Flywheel 878 MW
Flow batteries 75 MW Pumped hydropower 56,491 MW
Condensers 78 MW
100,000 MW Lead-acid batteries 121 MW 30,000 MW
Molten salt batteries 153 MW
Lithium-ion 498 MW
Flywheel 988 MW 20,000 MW
Air compressor storage 1,436 MW
50,000 MW Pumped hydropower 177,392 MW
10,000 MW

0 MW 0 MW
El on att rid

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The need for energy storage in the energy system will
increase as the share of intermittent energy generation
in the energy system increases. Figure 1 is a diagram
of different energy (electricity) storage technologies
by primary physical energy transmission technology/
storage technology. This report will not cover heat
storage.
The energy storage market is still relatively lim-
ited and only a few technologies have reached the
commercial stage on a larger scale. Figure 2 and 3
show capacity that exists, is being planned and being
developed (2014) for mechanical and electrochemi-
cal storage units. The data for these diagrams comes
from the US DoE Global Energy Storage Database.
The storage technologies shown in Figure 2 are de-
scribed in more detail in Chapter 3.

6
 1600

1400
Pumped hydropower 22 %

1200
Compressed air 27 %
1000

800
GWh

600

400

VRB 23 % Sodium-sulphur 23 %
200

Lithium-ion 10 %
0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200

GW

250 SEK Billion

231,3
28,8 Rest of the world Figure 4 (above): Potential of various
200 Europe electricity storage technologies globally
64,8 China and Japan 2030.6
150 135
North America
Figure 5 (left): Anticipated energy
Total
100 68,4 storage market development.7
54
50 Figure 6 (below): Energy storage market
69,3 development in SEK billions.8
0
2015 2020 2030 2030

NORTH AMERICA REST OF THE WORLD EUROPE CHINA AND JAPAN

69,3 68,4
64,8

58,5 57,6

49,5

44,1

38,7
35,1

28,8

22,5
18 18
14,4
12,6

4,5

2015 2020 2025 2030 2015 2020 2025 2030 2015 2020 2025 2030 2015 2020 2025 2030

7
 Figure 7: Maturity of different storage technologies.9

Flow batteries
Lithium-ion applications
Supercapacitor Molten salt
Flywheel
SMES Sodium-sulphur batteries
Adiabatic compressed
air storage
Hydrogen gas Compressed air storage
Investment need * Technological risk

Synthetic natural gas

Lithium-ion technology

Pumped hydropower

Research Development Demonstration Market launch Mature technology Time

Table 1: Applicability of stored energy.10

Role in the energy system

The transmission system The distribution system Consumer
and centralised storage and regional storage (building and residential level)
(national and European level) (city and district level)
Balance between • Seasonal/weekly/daily/ • Daily/hourly variations • Daily variations
supply and hourly variations
demand • Substantial geographical imbalances
• Large variations due to intermittent
Function

electricity generation
Distribution • Voltage and frequency control • Voltage and • Aggregation of small amounts of
(moving energy) • Additional peak production frequency control stored energy to meet distribution
• Power market • Power market needs (capacity problems and loss
• International market reduction)
Energy Better energy efficiency in the global Load and storage control Local generation and consumption,
efficiency energy mix for better efficiency in the change in behaviours, increased
improvement distribution grid value of local generation

Table 2: Application areas of different storage technologies.

 Suitable technology for the application
 More technology development or further cost reduction needed
 Technology not suitable for the application

Electricity quality Local energy Moving energy in Investment defer- Reserve power/
and stability optimisation time (days or longer) ment in T&D UPS
Pumped hydropower
Compressed air
Lead-acid batteries
Lithium-ion batteries
Sodium-sulphur
batteries
Flow batteries
Supercapacitors
SMES
Flywheels

8
In Revisiting Energy Storage11 the Boston Consulting
Group (BCG) describes the estimated market potential
of various technologies. This is illustrated in Figure 4.
Batteries are expected to account for about half of all
electrical energy storage. In terms of electrical power,
pumped hydropower and compressed-air technology
respectively are expected to dominate the market in
2030. These technologies are expected to gradually be
replaced by hydrogen gas storage from 2020. The bat-
tery storage technologies that are expected to dominate
the market are sodium-sulphur batteries (NaS), VRB
(vanadium redox batteries) and lithium-ion batteries.
The graph above shows one market scenario, but it
may change due to rapid development battery prices,
see Figure 11.
BCG also estimates that sales of storage technologies
will reach SEK 54 billion in 2015, SEK 135 billion in
2020 and SEK 234 billion in 2030 (Figure 5). The high-
est growth is expected to be made in North America,
China, Japan and Europe.12
Figure 6 describes anticipated development in dif-
ferent markets.
As mentioned earlier, the different storage technolo-
gies are at different stages of commercial maturity.
Figure 7 show where the different technologies were
on the maturity scale in 2013.
Application
Different energy storage technologies have different ap-
plication potential and limitations. Table 1 shows the
various functionalities in different parts of the energy
Figure 8: Vehicle battery
systems via aggregators.13
Aggregator 1
GRID OWNER
Aggregator 3
9
system. Europe is focusing on integrating intermittent
electricity generation in the energy system, while the
US is placing more emphasis on ways to compensate
for weaknesses in its electricity system. Table 2 shows
application areas that are the most suitable for each of
the technologies listed above.
Reserve power
Stored energy can be used as reserve power. Below is a
description of different types of reserve power.
Spinning reserve power
Capacity which is online and can respond within 10
minutes to compensate for generation or transmission
interruptions. Frequency-responsive spinning reserve
power responds within 10 seconds to maintain the
system’s required frequency. Spinning reserve power
is the first type used when there is a deficit.
Supplemental reserves
Electricity generation capacity that can be offline or
that consists of a block of curtailable and/or interrupt-
ible load and that can be available within 10 minutes.
Unlike spinning reserves, supplemental reserves are not
synchronised with the grid’s frequency. Supplemental
reserves are used after all spinning reserve capacity is
online.
Back-up supply
Reserve power that can be deployed within an hour.
This is mainly a back-up for reserves. It can also be
used as commercial reserves and for selling.
Traditional grid services
Grid services integrated into vehicles
Aggregator 2
Figure 9: Common energy storage system compared to an optimised energy storage system.14

COMMON ENERGY STORAGE SOLUTION

Mid-day production
Maximum input
peak fed into grid
to the net
COMMON ENERGY STORAGE SOLUTION

Mid-day production
Maximum input
peak fed into grid
to the net
Charging until
battery is full

Charging until
battery is full

6 a.m. Noon 6 p.m.

OPTIMISED ENERGY STORAGE

6 a.m. Noon 6 p.m.

Charging during high
energy production periods
OPTIMISED ENERGY STORAGE

Reduced input capacity increases

Reduce local grid capacity by 66%
Charging
input during high
energy
to gridproduction periods

Reduced input capacity increases

Reduce local grid capacity by 66%
input
to grid

6 a.m. Noon 6 p.m.

6 a.m. Noon 6 p.m.

Electric vehicles Electricity Act

Since electric vehicles could potentially function as
small distributed energy storage resources, they could
potentially serve as an aggregated energy solution
with smart technology and control. Electric vehicle
batteries could be used as distribution units in the en-
ergy system by way of an aggregator. Figure 8 illus-
trates how a system like this would work.
Solar cells and battery storage
Substantial efficiency gains can be made through con-
trolled battery charging and solar energy input into
the grid. Figure 9 shows regular storage compared
with grid-optimised storage.
There are still legal barriers for energy storage and the
definition of energy storage and the rules for owner-
ship are unclear. In Sweden grid companies are per-
mitted to own their stored energy, but they can only
use it for the purpose of covering grid losses or to tem-
porarily compensate for power cuts/failures. In other
words: stored energy may only be used in emergencies.
An amendment to Sweden’s Electricity Act (Ellagen)
is needed if energy reserves are to be commercially at-
tractive for grid companies.15

10
3. Energy storage technologies
Pumped hydropower
In a pumped hydropower facility, water with low po-
tential energy is pumped from a reservoir at a low el-
evation to a reservoir at a higher elevation. The pump
uses electricity to increase the potential energy in the
water; a form of energy that can be stored. The facility
is run as a pumping station when surplus electricity is
available. When electricity is needed the pumping fa-
cility can serve as a normal hydropower plant. Water
is released from the highest reservoir through a pipe
taking it to a turbine connected to a generator. The
potential energy in the water is first converted into ki-
netic energy in the pipe and then into electrical energy
after the generator.
A diagram of a typical pumped hydropower plant is
presented in Figure 10.
Pumped hydropower is a mature and established
technology that is well-suited for large-scale applica-
tions but not yet implemented in small-scale solutions.
Europe, including Norway, has a few remaining loca-
tions that are suitable for pumped hydropower. There
are some environmental considerations that must be
taken into account as these plants have a significant
impact on the natural environment.16

Figure 10: Diagram of a pumped hydropower plant.17

Reservoirs

Inflow

Plenum
chamber

Breaker
Outflow

Transformer valve Power chamber

Table 3: Pumped hydropower plants in Sweden.

Drop Power (MW) Production (GWh/year) Constructed

Letten 191 36 65 1956
Kymmen 88 55 34 1987

11
Table 4: Technical data for pumped storage hydropower plants.18

Pumped hydropower plant

Used for Load and energy peaks,
minute reserves
Figure 11: Pumped hydropower
Usage time 1 to 24 hours plants by geography.
Capacity Up to 5,000 MW depending
on size of dam and elevation
difference China 18 %
Other 20 %
Energy density 0.35–1.12 kWh/m3
Efficiency level 65–85 %
Losses 0–0.5 % per day
Start-up time Seconds to minutes
Life 50–100 years USA 16 %

Production phase Commercially available EU 30 %

Investment cost SEK 4,500–32,400/kW

(depending on location)
Japan 16 %
Geographical requirements Elevation difference

In Sweden Fortum has two pumped hydropower
plants: Letten and Kymmen. These two plants are de-
scribed in Table 3.
Pumped hydropower has the greatest potential in
China and India which have suitable geographical
locations for effective plants. Other countries in the
world need to consider more unconventional designs
such as pumped hydropower using saltwater and un-
derground water reservoirs.19
Globally in 2011 there were 280 plants with a com-
bined capacity of 132 GW. Around 40 of these plants
have a capacity of between 50 and 2,100 MW.20 Figure
11 shows a geographical breakdown for the plants.
Pumped hydropower facilities have a short response
time, which means they can be used for both voltage
and frequency control, spinning and non-spinning re-
serves, as well as for arbitrage and system capacity
support. 21
The fact boxes above show technical data for
pumped hydropower plants.
Compressed-air energy storage
Systems based on compressed-air energy storage (CAES)
use electricity (when supply is greater than demand) to
compress air in a reservoir, either in underground cav-
erns/aquifers, or vessels or pipes above ground. When
demand for electricity is instead higher than the sup-
ply, the compressed air is heated, expanded and taken
through an expander or a conventional turbine to pro-
duce electricity. Figure 12 is a diagram of a CAES plant
with subterranean storage in a cavern in a salt mine/
mine.
In the compression process a large amount of heat
escapes and if this heat is not recycled, the efficiency
of CAES plants is low (42–54 percent). The current
generation CAES plants do not recycle the heat and the
challenge for the next generation CAES plants is the
very high temperatures of 650°C or more, which affect
the choice of materials used for heat exchangers.
CAES is the only commercially viable, large-scale
storage technology aside from pumped hydropower.
There is currently one facility in Germany (290 MW)
and one in Alabama, USA (110 MW). Additional pro-
jects are in the pipeline. CAES technology is expected
to be used in the USA where a number of locations
have already been selected. In the EU further develop-
ment of CAES technology is expected, and in particu-
lar the first adiabatic CAES technology facility, ADELE,
is proving to be successful. 22
ADELE is a project where advanced adiabatic CAES
technology (AA-CAES) is used (so-called second gen-
eration compressed air technology). Adiabatic here
means that the heat generated in the compression
process is used to increase energy efficiency. The
goal is to increase energy efficiency to a level of 70
percent. ADELE is a demonstration plant that is ex-
pected to be operational in 2016. 23
The second generation CAES technology has the po-
tential for lower installation costs, higher efficiency and
shorter construction times compared to the first genera-

12
Figure 12: Diagram of a compressed air storage facility and adjacent electricity generation plant.24

Heat High-pressure Low-pressure

recycling turbine turbine
Engine Compressor Generator

Fuel
(natural gas)

Storage

Salt dome

Table 5: Compressed air technology.25

Compressed air technology

Used for Load and energy peaks, minute reserve
Usage time 1 to 24 hours
Capacity Depending on storage size
Energy density 0.5–0.8 kWh/m3 (60 bar, the energy density depends on the pressure)
Efficiency level Common compressed air technology: 42–54 %,
Advanced adiabatic compressed air technology: up to 70 %
Losses 0–10 % per day
Start-up time Minutes
After three minutes 50 % of the capacity is available
After 10–14 minutes 100 % of the capacity is available
Life 25–40 years
Production phase Common compressed air technology: commercially available
Advanced adiabatic compressed air technology: development phase
Investment cost 6,000 (common CAES)–9,600 (AA-CAES) SEK/kW
Geographical requirements Close to a salt dome, empty gas field or aquifer

13
tion. In one type of second generation CAES technology Batteries
a natural gas fired combustion turbine (CT) is used to
generate heat during the expansion process. In these Many different types of batteries are being developed
plants about two thirds of the electrical energy pro- today. The batteries that exist and their market share
duced is generated from the expansion turbine and one are shown in Figure 13. The reason for the big jump
third from the CT. A new compressor design and an for lithium-ion batteries in 2014 is the dramatic price
advanced turbo unit also improves production in CAES development.
systems based on the technology without a CT.
CAES plants that store compressed air above ground
are typically smaller than plants with underground
storage. The capacity of small plants is often between
3 and 50 MW with output of 2–6 hours.26
CAES plants with above ground storage are located Figure 13: Different types of batteries and their estimated
at suitable sites, but are more expensive to build (cal- installed capacity (MW) in the world 2014.28
culated as SEK/kW) than plants with subterranean
storage. The most cost-effective plants are CAES plants
with subterranean storage with a storage capacity of 400
Existing capacity 2012
up to 400 MW and an output of 8–26 hours. The loca- 350
Installed capacity 2013–2014
tion of these plants involves exploiting and verifying 300
storage options based on geological information indi- 250
cating suitability for a CAES plant in the area. 27 The
MW

200
adiabatic CAES technology is fairly mature technology,
150
particularly in the case of large-scale centralised ap-
plications. 100

50

0
Other Nickel Redox Advanced Lithium- Sodium-
batteries cadmium flow lead-acid ion sulphur
battery battery battery battery battery

Figure 14: Cost development for lithium-ion batteries.29

17,500

Cost estimated in publications – highest and lowest Cost of Tesla Power Wall
Publications, reports and journals Cost of Tesla Power Block
15,000

12,500

10,000
SEK/kWh

7,500

5,000

2,500

0
2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030

14
 Costs
The big challenge for batteries is cost, despite the fact
the cost is expected to fall dramatically over the next
decade, partly due to economies of scale and partly
due to technical innovation. Figure 14 shows the cur-
rent costs and the expected cost trend for lithium-ion
batteries in electric vehicles. Note also the cost level
for the new Tesla batteries that have recently entered
the market.
Figure 15 shows different types of large-scale lithi-
um-ion batteries and expected cost trends.
Figure 16 shows a cost comparison between differ-
ent types of batteries, current and expected.
Battery cost predictions are, however, constantly
changing. Recently, for example, (1 May 2015) Tesla
launched its own battery, Tesla Powerwall, and in-
dustrial battery, Tesla Powerblock. Powerwall batter-
ies are sold for USD 3,500 (equivalent to around SEK
30,000) and have a storage capacity of 10 kWh.30 This
is equivalent to a price of USD 350/kWh and is also
for a small-scale system. The industrial battery is sold
for USD 250/kWh, which is equivalent to about SEK
2,000/kWh.
Market
Boston Consulting Group estimates that the in-
creased total market potential for storage technolo-
gies will be an additional 300 GW over and above the

Figure 15: Current cost and future anticipated development of different types of lithium-ion batteries.31

8,000
Lithium titanate Lithium nickel manganese cobalt Lithium nickel cobalt aluminium

7,000 6,800
Lithium iron Lithium manganese spinel Lithium cobalt
phosphate
5,950
6,000
5,525
5,100 5,100
5,000
SEK/KWh

4,250
4,000 3,655 3,740
3,400

3,000 2,720
2,550 2,550
2,380
2,082
1,912 1,785 1,785
2,000
1,530
1,000

0
2014 2017 2020

Figure 16: Cost for large-scale battery storage, comparison of current and expected.32

8,000
Flow batteries Sodium-sulphur batteries

7,000 Advanced lead-acid batteries Sodium metal halide batteries

6,000 5,780 Lithium-ion batteries

5,100
5,000 4,675 4,675 4,675
4,547 4,547
SEK/KWh

4,148 4250 4250

3,952
4,000
3400
2975
3,000
2,550

2,000 1700

1,000

0
2014 2017 2020
Figure 17: Geographical distribution of current and anticipated installed battery capacity.33

300
277
Installed capacity
250
Planned and under construction

200 191
MW

150

106
100

59
50 35 32
18 13 10 10 8
0 2 4 3 4 2 4 1 5
0
Japan USA China Chile United Kingdom Canada Germany South Korea Spain Italy

existing 100 GW. Batteries are expected to account
for almost 50 percent of the total investment in the
market in 2030. Batteries are, however, expected to
account for only a small part of the total installed
storage capacity. The following market share is ex-
pected in 2030. 34
• Sodium-sulphur: 23 percent of the market,
SEK 582 billion
• Vanadium redox (VRB): 18 percent of the market,
SEK 448 billion
• Lithium-ion: 10 percent of the market,
SEK 258 billion
Total investments in the battery market are expected
to be equal to SEK 1,280 billion.
The market share estimated by the Boston Consult-
ing Group above can, however, be questioned as other
market predictions indicate that lithium-ion batteries
are expected to dominate the market in electrochemi-
cal energy storage.35
Figure 17 shows the current installed battery capac-
ity and planned capacity.
Battery technology
Below is a more detailed description of some of the
various battery technologies.
Important parameters for a battery’s usefulness are
its discharge speed (how fast the battery discharges),
depth of discharge (how much of the total capacity
is used in cyclic operation, i.e. if the depth is 20 per-
cent, the battery is delivering 20 percent of its total
capacity) and the number of discharge cycles during
the battery’s life.
Sodium-sulphur (molten salt) batteries
Sodium-sulphur batteries (NaS) consist of liquid so-
dium and sulphur. This battery technology is mature
and has a system efficiency of 80 percent. 36 The ex-
pected life is 15 years or 4,500 cycles.37
Energy density of this type of battery is around
60 Wh/kg and they cost around SEK 4,800/kWh in
2014.38
Lead-acid
This battery technology is also mature. The battery
life varies greatly depending on the application, dis-
charge speed and the number of discharge cycles.
Lead-acid batteries are very widely used in com-
bination with small-scale renewable energy produc-
tion. In 1995–2009, for example, 50,000 solar battery
systems were installed in homes in Morocco, and in
Bangladesh 3.5 million homes have solar battery sys-
tems.39
The main problem for many lead-acid batteries is
that they still have a low depth of discharge (less than
20 percent), low number of life cycles (fewer than 500)
and a short life (3–4 years).
The energy density is around 50 Wh/kg, which is
generally lower than for lithium-ion batteries. New
versions of lead-acid batteries have, however, demon-
strated significantly better properties, such as 2,800
cycles, 50 percent discharge depth and a life of 17
years.40
Lithium-ion
Lithium-ion batteries have high energy density and
speed of discharge compared to other batteries. They
are therefore efficient relative to their size and this is

16
Table 6: Data for lithium-ion batteries.41

Energy density Number 2014

Lithium- Cathode Anode Electrolysis
(Wh/kg) of cycles SEK/kWh
Lithium-
Iron phosphate (LFP) LFP Graphite 85–105 200–2,000 3,850–5,950
carbonate
Manganese oxide Lithium-
LMO Graphite 140–180 800–2,000 3,150–4,900
(LMO) carbonate
Titanium oxide Lithium-
LMO LTO 80–95 2,000–25,000 6,300–15,400
(LTO) polymer
Cobalt oxide Lithium-
LCO Graphite 140–200 300–800 1,750–3,500
(LCO) carbonate
Nickel cobalt Lithium-
NCA Graphite 120–160 800–5,000 1,680–2,660
aluminium (NCA) carbonate
Nickel manganese Graphite, Lithium-
NMC 120–140 800–2,000 3,850–5,250
cobalt (NMC) Silicone carbonate

constantly being improved. They have a high efficien-
cy level of 80–90 percent.
Lithium-ion batteries consist of an array of chemi-
cal combinations, all with unique properties and
costs. Table 6 shows the different types of lithium-ion
batteries that exist and technical data for them.
One of the main challenges for lithium-ion batteries
is safety. Due to their high energy density, the flam-
mability of lithium and the oxygen content, they can
overheat and start to burn.42
Flow batteries
Unlike other batteries, a flow battery has liquid elec-
trodes. The liquid electrodes can be stored outside
the battery cell, allowing larger volumes to be stored.
This is one of the benefits of flow batteries and an-
other is that they have short reaction times. Flow
batteries also have a long life due to the fluid elec-
trodes. The drawback with these types of batteries
is that they have low energy density and that, due to
their size, they are not suitable for mobile applica-
tions.
Power to gas
Power to gas (P2G) is a method used for large-scale
storage of electrical energy in the form of gas. The
concept can be briefly described as electricity being
used to produce hydrogen gas by means of electrolysis.
The technology can, for example, be used to take
surplus electricity from intermittent electricity gen-
eration, i.e. from wind and solar. The hydrogen gas
produced can, for example, be used to boost biogas
production, or can be used directly or stored in gas
grids. The hydrogen gas produced in a Sabatier reac-
tion can be used to produce methane gas directly.
The diagram in Figure 18 illustrates the production
process for hydrogen gas (H 2) and subsequent produc-
tion of methane gas (CH4)

Figure 18: The production process for hydrogen gas (H2) and subsequent production of methane gas (CH4)

Electricity
Electrolysis Sabatier reaction Distribution
from intermittent
production of production of example
electricity
H2 CH4 gas grid
generation

17
Table 7: Power to gas, H2 production.43
AEC: Alkaline electrolysis PEM: Polymer electrolyte membrane/Proton exchange membrane

Power to gas, H2 production

Used for Long-term storage, grid balancing
Usage time Seconds to minutes
Capacity kW-GW
Energy density 3 kWh/Nm3
Efficiency level 62–82 %
Losses 0–1 % per day
Start-up time AEC: minutes, PEM: seconds
Life AEC: Degrades to 75 % over 10 years, PEM: 5–10 years
Production phase AEC: commercially available, PEM: prototype
Investment cost 6,300–9,900 SEK/kW
Geographical requirements None

Table 8: Power to gas, CH4 production.44

Power to gas, CH4 production

Used for Long-term storage, grid balancing
Usage time Seconds to minutes
Capacity kW–GW
Energy density 9.81 kWh/Nm3
Efficiency level 49–56 %
Losses 0–1 % per day
Start-up time Minutes to hours
Life 20 years
Production phase Commercially available
Investment cost 21,600 SEK/kW
Geographical requirements None

Table 7 and 8 show information on P2G in the two Flywheels

cases where hydrogen gas (H 2) and methane gas (CH4)
are produced.
In general the technology is very flexible in terms of
capacity and is particularly well-suited for decentral-
ised applications. No specific geological conditions are
required. In 2025 storage costs (calculated as levelised
cost of energy, LCOE) for 180 cycles a year are expected
to be SEK 1.30/kWh, and for 360 cycles a year about
SEK 1.15/kWh.45
Extensive research is taking place to develop tech-
nology for hydrogen gas storage using a number of
different methods.
A flywheel stores kinetic energy. A high-mass rotor
spins fast and without resistance using magnetic bear-
ings. By reducing the rotor speed energy is extracted
and by adding energy to the rotor it spins faster and
the energy is stored.
In most modern flywheel technologies the rotor sys-
tem is enclosed for reasons of safety and efficiency. It
is usually in a protective steel case encapsulating the
rotor, engine/generator and other rotating parts. This
also prevents it from causing harm to personnel and
surrounding equipment in the case of a possible ro-

18
tor failure. Encapsulation also has a positive impact
on the flywheel’s efficiency. The rotor often spins in a
vacuum enclosure or one filled with low-friction gases
such as helium.
Flywheel technology has high energy density which
means that it requires little space to store a relatively
large amount of energy. Response times for flywheel
technology are also very short, often 4 milliseconds or
shorter, and they can be deployed for short periods of
up to an hour. A flywheel can be dimensioned at be-
tween 100 kW and 1,650 kW. They have an efficiency
level of around 93 percent and an estimated life of
around 20 years.46
Thanks to the short response time, a typical appli-
cation for flywheels is an uninterrupted power supply
(UPS).47
Beacon Power has developed large-scale flywheel
solutions such as a unit with a capacity of 20 MW (200
units of 100 kW, around 25 kWh) which is mainly
used to correct frequency imbalances in New York.
The use of flywheel technology solutions for voltage
quality applications is expected to increase signifi-
cantly over the next decade.48 Sales are expected to
increase significantly in Europe and Asia, while the US
is expected to remain the largest market until 2021.49
SMES – Superconducting magnetic
energy storage
SMES is a type of magnetic energy storage that uses
superconductors. SMES has a high efficiency level of
over 90 percent and is based on instantaneous charg-
ing/discharging cycles, making SMES extremely well-
Table 9: Comparison between SMES, flywheels and supercapacitors.
Efficiency level Life
Flywheels 95 % 20 years
SMES 90 % 30–50,000 cycles
Supercapacitors 95 % 1,000,000+ cycles
19
suited for electricity quality support solutions. SMES
solutions are generally small scale with a current
maximum storage capacity of around 10 MW. The
physical size of the spool is a limiting factor for this
technology. The extremely heavy weight of magnetic
systems a natural obstacle for upscaling. It is essen-
tially impossible to build and implement larger scale
SMES solutions. Increasing the thickness of the super-
conducting threads would raise the heat that develops
and lower efficiency. Also, the effects of the magnetic
field around the equipment has not yet been thorough-
ly analysed.
SMES is a technology that is the most established
among the technical high voltage solutions in installa-
tions in Europe, Japan and the US. The US is expected
to be an important market for SMES technology, along
with Germany and Japan, but not on the same level
as the fast markets for flywheel and supercapacitor
technologies.50
Supercapacitors
The advantages of supercapacitors are their high en-
ergy density, efficiency and the number of possible dis-
charge cycles during their life; they have the ability to
charge and discharge in more than one million cycles.
Supercapacitor technology is on the cusp of a break-
through in the market for storage solutions for power
grids. The US, Korea and Japan are expected to be the
main markets for supercapacitors. 51
Table 9 shows a comparison of SMES, flywheels and
supercapacitors.
Discharge speed Energy density (Wh/kg)
0.1–20 minutes 200
1–8 seconds 40–60
0.001–3 seconds 1–30
4. Comparison of different
storage technologies
As indicated earlier, the various storage technologies have different advantages and drawbacks. The table
below shows a comparison of the different types of storage technology presented in this report.

Energy storage method Capacity (MW) Usage time Efficiency level (%) Start-up time
Pumped hydropower plant < 5000 1–24 h 65–85 s-min
42–54 (normal)
Depends on
Compressed air technology 1–24 h 70 (advanced min
storage capacity
adiabatic)
Lead-based batteries 0,001–50 s–3 h 60–95 -
Lithium-based batteries 0,001–0,1 min–h 85–99 -
Flow batteries
0,03–7 s–10 h 85 ms
Vanadium redox batteries
Flow batteries
0,05–2 s–10 h 70–75 ms
Zinc bromide batteries

Sodium-sulphur batteries 0,5–50 s–h 85–90 -

Power to gas,
kW–GW s–months 62-82 s-min
H2 production
Power to gas,
kW–GW s–months 49–56 min–h
CH4 production
Flywheels 0,002–20 s–min 95 s-min
SMES 0,001–10 s 90 ms
Supercapacitors 0,01–1 ms–s 95 ms

20
5. Appendix
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6. Boston Consulting Group, Revisiting Energy
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22. Visiongain, The Energy Storage Technologies
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