Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what plans the Government has to (a) provide financial support and (b) conclude and sign long-term contracts prior to construction in order to achieve the capital investment in energy storage technology necessary to reach the 27.4 gigawatts identified in the Technology Innovation Needs Assessment.

The Technology Innovation Needs Assessment Summary Report on Electricity Networks and Storage, published by the Low Carbon Innovation Coordination Group in 2012, included an estimated range of 7 - 59GW for the potential level of energy storage which might be deployed in the UK by 2050.

The Government recognises the potential for storage to help use energy more flexibly and to decarbonise the UK energy system cost effectively, alongside other flexible solutions such as interconnection and demand-side response (DSR). In light of this, more than £80m public sector controlled support has been committed to energy storage research, development and demonstration activities since 2012. Innovation is expected to help drive storage costs down further.

DECC is investigating the potential barriers to deployment of energy storage and possible mitigating actions, focussing in the first instance on removing regulatory barriers but also considering whether more needs to be done to stimulate investment in energy storage. DECC will be publishing a call for evidence on this area shortly.