The Next 2 Years Will Rapidly Advance Battery Technology to Levels Only Previously Dreamed Of
Minato-ku, Japan, June 19, 2015 (Newswire.com) - The timing for inventors and investors may finally be right. Wind turbines accounted for 45 percent of new U.S. power production last year, while solar made up 34 percent of fresh capacity worldwide. Storing this energy when the sun isn’t shining or a breeze isn’t blowing has remained an expensive hurdle. Battery believers say that’s changing. They’ve invested more than $5 billion in the past decade, racing to get technologies to market. They’re betting new batteries can hold enough clean energy to run a car, home, or campus; store power from wind or solar farms; and make dirty electricity grids greener by replacing generators and reducing the need for more fossil fuel plants. This market for storage capacity will increase almost 10-fold in three years to 2,400 megawatts, equal to six natural gas turbines, Navigant Consulting says.
More money will flow to the global, $50 billion-a-year battery industry as the U.S., China, and Germany scramble to cut greenhouse gases. The market includes everything from flashlights and home solar to power sources for islands and storage that can fortify grids. Startups like Anthertech are chasing the pot in a field dominated by Panasonic and LG Electronics, which are advancing their own offerings. “It’s a fantastic time, with some really strong technologies coming from outside of the USA. Asia is proving competitive with Japan & China making major inroads in financially viable alternatives” says Venkat Srinivasan, who leads storage research at Berkeley Lab.