Report on policy support for energy storage

What is the future of energy storage?

“The Future of Energy Storage,” a new multidisciplinary report from the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI), urges government investment in sophisticated analytical tools for planning, operation, and regulation of electricity systems in order to deploy and use storage efficiently.

How many states have energy storage policies?

Around 15 states have adopted some form of energy storage policy, including procurement targets, regulatory adaption, demonstration programs, financial incentives, and/or consumer protections. Several states have also required that utility resource plans include energy storage.

What is a storage policy?

All of the states with a storage policy in place have a renewable portfolio standard or a nonbinding renewable energy goal. Regulatory changes can broaden competitive access to storage such as by updating resource planning requirements or permitting storage through rate proceedings.

How can critical services benefit from energy storage policy improvements?

Critical services can benefit from policy improvements that enable greater adoption of energy storage, including the use of energy storage as an alternative to backup diesel generators and regulatory cost models that allow grid storage to be repurposed for emergency services.

Is Doe addressing the energy storage industry's challenges?

EAC conducted a months-long review of obstacles and challenges facing the energy storage industry to determine areas of pressure and pain, and to assess whether DOE was addressing these obstacles and challenges in its funding, policy, initiatives, and other efforts.

Why is energy storage important?

As the report details, energy storage is a key component in making renewable energy sources, like wind and solar, financially and logistically viable at the scales needed to decarbonize our power grid and combat climate change.