This article (and accompanying video) relates to our Quarterly Calls - where we have bespoke calls with Modo Enterprise teams to look at trends and news from the world of battery energy storage in the previous quarter. These are exclusive to users on our Enterprise subscription.
Battery energy storage is a constantly evolving asset class. It is playing an increasing role in a variety of markets as we attempt to achieve our net-zero goals. New batteries are being built all the time, and the commercial case is stronger than ever. Here at Modo, we provide data and insights around battery energy storage systems (BESS) in Great Britain - and now Ireland too!
One part of our premium Enterprise offering is our Quarterly Call. This is where our Research team offer Modo’s Enterprise users a bespoke run-down of all the major happenings and emergent trends in the GB BESS world, from the previous quarter. This involves an in-depth presentation, using our specialist data and unique insights, followed by a lively question and answer session.
Our users love their Quarterly Calls, but it can often be difficult to arrange them at a time that suits everybody, despite our best efforts. Because of this, Robyn Lucas (Chief Analytics Officer) and Alex Done (Head of Research) have recorded the latest presentation, for those users who want access to the Quarterly Call at a time that suits them. Make sure to check out the video below. Underneath that, we’ve also embedded all of the slides and graphs from the call.
Without further ado, here are the top 9 things you need to know about battery energy storage from Q1 2022.
1. We expect installed battery energy storage capacity in GB to (almost) quadruple in the next three years
- As outlined in Imrith Sangha’s March update of Modo’s Future of GB battery energy storage buildout report, we expect to see installed BESS capacity top 6 GW in Q3 2025.
- In Q1 2022, we saw an extra 85 MW of capacity come online.
- As you can see above, we’ve highlighted some of the main players whose battery build-out plans will help push us towards that 6.5 MW figure. Gresham House is planning on building over 800 MW of new battery energy storage assets by 2025.
- We also saw Gore Street Energy Storage Fund acquiring its first batteries on the continent and in the US.
2. February saw new all-time highs for GB battery energy storage revenues
- In February 2022, we saw new record-high battery energy storage revenues in GB, with assets earning £151k/MW (annualised) during the month.
- We saw a range of different revenue strategies across Q1. Each of these bars represents a different asset from the Modo Leaderboard, and you can see which markets they made their money in across Q1 2022.
3. High DCL prices were a driver of those February revenues
4. Loads of new auction changes took effect in DC
Q1 saw three major key changes to the Dynamic Containment service and auction design. We’ve written about each of these in more detail, and you can check out those articles below:
- We saw a new all-time high price in DCL of £104/MW/h, during EFA block 3 on 7th April.
- In the two graphs above, you can see the effects that the removal of merit-order constraints can have on an auction.
5. Higher than normal FFR prices helped boost the battery energy storage revenue stack
- FFR prices in April were up 188% on the same time last year.
- We can see the shift away from, and then back into, FFR over time.
6. We got a glimpse of what the new Dynamic suite of frequency response services will look like
To find out more about the respective launches of the Dynamic Regulation and Dynamic Moderation services, head along to:
- Understanding frequency response in GB: in our first ever Modo Live event, we shone a light on the launch of Dynamic Regulation. You can watch the event in its entirety by following the above link, or you can see the Dynamic Regulation slides here.
- Dynamic Moderation - the first three days
- Cycling rates are important because batteries will want to keep within warranty limits and not degrade their systems too much. They matter because batteries may want to further de-rate their capacity to only cycle a certain amount of times per day.
- As we can see, DC requires far less cycles than DR.
- Above, we’ve outlined the four stages of the frequency response transition.
7. Wholesale prices have calmed down a bit
8. The Triad that wasn’t
Triads have become more and more difficult to predict over the past few years. We wrote an article looking at BESS activity in and around the winter 2021/22 Triad periods:
9. Battery energy storage in Ireland is booming
You may have seen that we released a free report into the state of battery energy storage in Ireland:
- An introduction to battery energy storage in Ireland (free download)
Keep your eyes peeled for loads more insights into battery energy storage in Ireland, coming very soon.
If you’re an Enterprise user and haven’t yet booked your Quarterly Call, make sure to get in touch with us via Intercom (the little blue circle in the bottom-right of your screen).