Energy storage

The year 2023 saw a spectacular acceleration in the development of stationary storage: as of September 1, 2023, the storage fleet comprises approximately 690 MW of storage connected to the grids, of which 285 MW on the transmission network and 405 MW on the distribution network. The current fleet is mainly composed of small 1-hour batteries connected to the distribution network, and projects on the transmission network that were winners of the AOLT. The queue included 3.7 GW of capacity on the transmission network, a level higher than the estimated need by RTE for the electrical system (but this does not prejudge the value of storage in market arbitrations).

Among the topics we will be attentive to in 2024:

1. The evolution of the market towards large projects of several tens of MW connected to the transmission network.

2. The impact of the opening of the aFRR; the development of batteries with a 2-hour endurance rather than one hour.

3. The explosion of connection demand: what fraction will actually be built?

4. The future AOFD ("Appel d'Offre Flexibilité Décarbonée"): could this mechanism disrupt a development that is beginning to materialize in the market (new subsidized capacities unduly competing with capacities developed without subsidy)?

5. The possible emergence of capacity on the "behind the meter" segment.

6. The evolution of storage valorization sources with the increase in value on deviations and the volatility of wholesale market prices linked to renewable growth.