Energy Industry Leaders Sign Agreement to Create Long Duration Energy Storage Council and Accelerate Carbon Neutrality

Glasgow, 10 November 2021 - The creation of the Long Duration Energy Storage (LDES) Council was confirmed today with the signing at COP26 of a Statement of Intent between the 24 founder members, publicly and reciprocally signaling an intention to form officially in Q1 2022. The LDES Council, which aims to replace the use of fossil fuels in meeting energy imbalances with zero-carbon alternatives, plans its inaugural meeting for early 2022 and confirmed that publication of its first annual report on use of long duration energy storage to reach NetZero carbon emissions will take place on November 23rd.

Present at the signing of the agreement at COP26 in Glasgow were CEOs and senior executives from Anchor members (Alfa Laval, Baker Hughes, BP, Greenko, Rio Tinto, Siemens Energy) and Technology providers (Ambri, Azelio, CellCube, Ceres Power, Echogen, Energy Dome, Enlighten Innovation, ESS, Form Energy, Highview, Malta, Quidnet). The LDES Council is open to technology providers, equipment providers, renewable energy companies, utilities, grid operators, investors, end-customers and organizations with interests in the deployment of energy storage of renewable power.

The LDES Council will provide guidance to governments and grid operators with the aim of enabling the global deployment of 85-140 TWh of long duration energy storage by 2040. This would see dispatchable renewable energy used to eliminate the 1.5 to 2.3 Gt of CO2 produced annually from fossil fuels to meet grid energy imbalances, equivalent to 10-15% of total emissions in today’s power sector. 

This addresses the issues that generation with renewables is unpredictable due to the nature of wind and solar power, while energy consumption sees daily peaks around early morning and evening. This misalignment creates periods of shortfall in electricity supply which is currently largely met by burning fossil fuels, especially natural gas. Lithium-ion batteries offer an alternate solution by storing renewable electricity but become too expensive for long storage durations beyond eight hours, while LDES is the most cost-effective solution to replace the use of fossil fuels in this case.

LDES Council Annual Report 

On November 23 2021 the LDES Council will publish its first annual report on the need for long duration energy storage to reach NetZero carbon emissions. The report, based on extensive research and collaboration of Council members, concludes that 1.5-2.5 TW and 85-140 TWh LDES could be deployed globally by 2040. This will cover around 10% of global electricity consumed, require between USD 1.5 and 3 trillion in investment, and would represent between four and seven times the total TWh global lithium-ion deployment today and between five and 11 times the total investment in renewable power in 2020. Long duration energy storage is already increasing momentum with over USD 3 billion invested in technology providers in the last five years. In the near future, building the momentum to reach NetZero will require 1 TWh of capacity to be deployed globally by 2025 with over USD 50 billion investment. Globally only around 7% of this required storage capacity exists today. 

Background to the LDES Council 

While supporting the deployment of long duration energy storage, the LDES Council is independent of any specific technology and its members span the spectrum of innovation from low-cost flow batteries to compressed gas solutions to mechanical energy storage. Through is research and communications the LDES Council will also provide guidance to governments and grid operators on the appropriate solutions for specific applications.

Energy storage technologies represented by the LDES Council include: 

Mechanical LDES, such as pumped hydro, that uses the manipulation of physical objects to capture energy for later release. LDES founder members using mechanical energy storage include: Energy Dome, Highview Power, Quidnet Energy.

Electrochemical LDES, such as batteries, that store energy in flow, metal-air or hybrid batteries. LDES founder members using electrochemical energy storage include: Ambri, CellCube, Enlighten, Eos Energy Storage, ESS Inc., e-Zinc, Form Energy, Redflow. 

Chemical LDES, such as synthetic gasses, where molecules are created that can later be used to generate energy. LDES founder members using chemical energy storage include: Ceres Power. 

Thermal LDES, such molten salt, where energy is stored through heating a solid or liquid for later release. LDES founder members using thermal energy storage include: Azelio, Echogen Power Systems, Malta Inc., Stiesdal. 

Additional members include equipment manufacturers (Alfa Laval, Baker Hughes, Siemens Energy), low carbon energy system integrators & developers (BP, Greenko, NEOM), industrial customers (Rio Tinto) and capital providers (Breakthrough Energy Ventures).

About the LDES Council 

The LDES Council is a global, CEO-led organization that strives to accelerate decarbonization of the energy system at lowest cost to society by driving innovation, commercialization and deployment of long duration energy storage. 

The LDES Council provides fact-based guidance and information to governments, industry and broader society, drawing from the experience of its members, which include leading energy companies, technology providers, investors and end-users.