US Deploys 41.2 MW Worth Of Energy Storage In Second Quarter

The United States is on pace for another historic year of energy storage deployment, according to new figures from GTM Research which shows the country deployed 41.2 MW of energy storage in the second quarter of 2016.

GTM Research published its US Energy Storage Monitor today, the research company’s quarterly analysis conducted in conjunction with the Energy Storage Association, revealing that the United States deployed 41.2 MW of energy storage in the second quarter of 2016, an increase of 126% over the year’s first quarter of 18.3 MW — though, this was well in line with 2015 second quarter installations, up only 1% on 41.0 MW.

US Quarterly Energy Storage Deployments by Segment (MW)

Behind-the-meter deployments increased slightly on the first quarter, up 3% quarter-over-quarter, while year-over-year growth increased 66%. Front-of-the-meter deployments declined somewhat in the quarter as compared to a year earlier, down 10%, but were up over threefold on the first quarter.

Of significant interest, however, was that the largest front-of-the-meter project deployed during the second quarter wasn’t in PJM territory or California, but rather in MISO’s territory in Indiana. In fact, PJM and California only accounted for 35% of the installed capacity, their lowest total in more than three years.

“This quarter marked several storage firsts, such as the first grid-scale project in MISO and a large solar-plus-storage at a municipal utility in Ohio,” said Ravi Manghani, GTM Research’s director of energy storage. “Additionally, the industry received a big boost from the White House, with recently announced public and private commitments that will result in 1.3 gigawatts of new storage deployments and, more importantly, spur a billion dollars in storage investments.”

All of this leads analysts to expect another strong year for energy storage deployment, with success in improving the economics of energy storage as well as expanding adoption into new markets — so much so, that GTM is predicting the US will deploy a total of 287 MW in 2016.

“The industry continues to surpass milestones, fueled by increased value and market opportunities, as well as plummeting system costs,” added Matt Roberts, executive director of the Energy Storage Association. “After record-breaking deployments in 2015, the energy storage industry is on pace to grow another 30 percent this year — increasing grid flexibility, efficiency, and resiliency along the way.”