CEA’s latest market intelligence report finds energy storage industry on track for annual growth despite COVID-19, and rapid growth over five years

DENVER, CO, UNITED STATES -- Clean Energy Associates, a leading solar and storage supply technical advisory, released its semi-annual Energy Storage System (ESS) Supplier Market Intelligence Program Report for 2020.

The latest report, which examines the first half of 2020, finds global lithium-ion battery cell production capacity on track to exceed 770 GWh by the end of the year, with year-on-year growth despite COVID-19. 

New Battery Technologies Less Prone to Fires

Multiple factors contributed to a slowdown in the rapid growth of the global energy storage market for the first time since 2012. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted both the global supply of and demand for energy storage. System fires in South Korea reduced confidence in large-scale battery safety among early lithium battery storage adopters, and dissuaded some new entrants from embracing storage opportunities. Growth in China also slowed, due to regulations barring grid-based energy storage system assets from being included in calculations for permitted income.

A renewed focus is expected on technologies that demonstrate increased stability and are less prone to fires. BYD’s new LFP ‘blade battery’ is an example of an innovative technology that displays record-setting resilience to thermal events. Flow batteries and solid-state batteries are also viewed as potential alternatives to traditional lithium-ion battery technologies.

“Despite the multiple challenges we saw in the first half of 2020, we expect the energy storage market to recover in the second half of 2020, and resume rapid growth in the near future,” said Andy Klump, Founder and CEO of Clean Energy Associates. “Strong demand from Europe and North America will keep rising, as long-term plans to reduce carbon emissions and scale renewable energy deployment kick in. On the supply side, battery manufacturers are actively expanding their capacities to meet the increasing demand from the electric vehicle sector for high-end battery products.”

Strategic EV and Battery Manufacturer Partnerships

Strategic partnerships between EV manufacturers and battery manufacturers remain active, with Tesla reaching a supply agreement with CATL, Volkswagen becoming the largest shareholder of Guoxuan, and Daimler partnering with Farasis.

The complete report, authored by CEA’s Technology and Quality team, is available by subscription, and includes insights gathered from 1-on-1 interviews with the technical leaders at many of the industry’s leading suppliers.