A techno-economic review of potential inter-seasonal energy storage in a fully green power grid

Cui, John Zhehao and Venmans, Frank ORCID: 0000-0002-4264-6606 (2025) A techno-economic review of potential inter-seasonal energy storage in a fully green power grid. IET Conference Proceedings, 2024 (32). 94 - 112. ISSN 2732-4494

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Abstract

The shift to a net-zero world drives a push for electrification across sectors. Energy storage is important for integrating renewable systems to enable a stable, flexible and affordable power supply. Li-ion batteries are effective for short-term (daily, weekly) balancing due to their falling production costs, fast response, and high round trip efficiency. However, they are less suitab le for long-term storage (monthly and seasonally) due to their short storage duration. This paper reviews cost structures and technical features of six technologies that could manage inter-seasonal power supply balance. It examines four potential storage options - compressed air energy storage, vanadium and zinc flow battery and power to X (green hydrogen). As well as two technologies designed for seasoning use, bioenergy + CCS (BECCS) and natural gas + CCS. This research compiles the identified key economic and technical data from 23 academic between 2018 and 2023. It reports the variability of economic data, such as marginal costs, CAPEX, and OPEX. It also reports variability of technical data, includi ng round-trip efficiency, capacity factor, and lifespan of the selected storage technologies. Using such data, it estimates the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of the selected energy storage options as a proxy to reflect the changes in the number of yearly cycles (charge-discharge) or yearly production days (for extra winter capacity). The study also presents a cost ranking for integrate into a fully decarbonised grid, with an in-depth discussion of their functionality based on the techno-economic conditions of several representative countries. Preliminary results suggest that BECCS and natural gas + CCS are likely more expensive than other energy storage options and operate at a lower capacity factor, making them less suitable for managing seasonal demands. However, these findings are subject to uncertainties, such as future technology costs, evolving inter-seasonal energy storage policies, and potential investments. The results also indicate that CAES could be an economical inter-seasonal storage solution in a fully decarbonised grid, with an estimated LCOE ranging between $0.08 and $0.14 per kWh. Although hydrogen has not been a favourable economic solution for managing the inter-seasonal power demand-supply balance due to its higher LCOE ($0.36–$0.76 per kWh) compared to CAES, it has the potential to scale up quickly and has the capability to ensure the inter-seasonal, and even yearly, power demand-supply balance. Furthermore, the study indicates the need to develop future energy storage policies, focusing on investment strategies, the role of long-term storage in the electricity market, and revenue calculation mechanisms.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	© 2025 The Institution of Engineering and Technology
Divisions:	Grantham Research Institute
Subjects:	G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GE Environmental Sciences T Technology > TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery
Date Deposited:	20 Mar 2025 10:54
Last Modified:	26 Mar 2025 09:33
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/127601

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