The role of legislation in European storage development
The cost of energy storage technologies, in particular batteries, has experienced a rapid decline in recent years. However, the cost is not the only obstacle energy storage needs to overcome. Existing European legislation has hindered the development of grid-scale storage in the region, a result of unclear fees and taxation regulations, and different rules across the continent. These regulatory bottlenecks have led energy storage investments in Europe to fall severely behind in comparison to the Asia-Pacific region, for example.Luckily for the sector, new regulatory frameworks have started pointing in the right direction. In May 2022, the European Commission launched REPowerEU, a plan to reduce energy dependence in the region and push forward with decarbonization. Although the policy was brief on the role and technologies of energy storage, it did recognize the sector’s relevance to Europe’s long-term energy targets. Energy storage requirements in the EU were estimated at almost 200 gigawatts by 2030, in order to meet the region’s renewable energy target. Until 2050, this capacity would need to more than triple. The UK is forecast to be the undisputable leader in grid-scale energy storage capacity additions until 2030, with Italy, Germany, and Spain poised to be leading players within the EU.
