Electricity: Storage

(asked on 24th May 2021) - View Source

Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate his Department has made of the seasonal electricity storage capacity that will be required to deliver the net zero target.


Answered by
Anne-Marie Trevelyan Portrait
Anne-Marie Trevelyan
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This question was answered on 2nd June 2021

Longer duration storage, including seasonal electricity storage, can help manage variation in generation and demand over long periods of time by storing excess generation until times when generation sources are less available or demand is greater. Analysis[1] suggests that longer-duration storage could reduce system costs by replacing gas-fired generation and reducing the requirement for other low-carbon generation.

The analysis demonstrates that there are a number of scenarios for generation and storage that could deliver net zero. The electricity market should determine the best solutions for very low emissions and reliable supply of electricity, at a low cost to consumers.

[1] Modelling 2050: electricity system analysis, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/modelling-2050-electricity-system-analysis

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