Global power sector: COP 29 leaders set to pledge goal of deploying ‘1,500 GW of energy storage & Grid’ by 2030

ISLAMABAD: The global leaders of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 29) are set to pledge a collective goal of deploying “1,500 GW of energy storage and Grid” in the global power sector by 2030. This target represents more than six times the level of energy storage in 2022, with efforts focused on achieving this ambitious goal.

The Declaration will be signed by the global leaders during the COP 29 being held in Baku (Azerbaijan) on November 11-12, 2024.

The resolution recognizes the essential role of energy storage and grid infrastructure in enabling resilient, decarbonized global energy systems. Energy storage technologies will enhance grid stability, integrate variable renewable energy, optimize grid usage, and improve energy security. Expanding and modernizing grids is necessary to maximize energy storage deployment and ensure efficient integration of renewable energy.

Key elements of the resolution include; (i) recognizing that both energy storage and grid infrastructure are essential for developing resilient, decarbonized global energy systems, the resolution highlights the need to efficiently manage growing energy demand, including peak loads, and integrate increasing shares of variable renewables and low-emission energy generation. Technologies such as batteries and other storage solutions are seen as crucial in improving grid reliability, alleviating congestion, stabilizing supply, and enhancing energy security ;(ii) battery costs have decreased by more than 90% in the last 15 years, making energy storage more cost-effective. As electrification and renewable energy generation accelerate, grid development and interconnections will be essential to integrate distributed renewable energy sources; (iii) recent commitments from the Group of Seven (G7) and the G20 to a global energy storage target of 1,500 GW by 2030 represent a more than six-fold increase from 2022 levels. The leaders acknowledge the gap between current forecasts—projecting 650 GW by the end of the decade—and the need for a more ambitious scale-up to meet the 1,500 GW target; and (iv) to support the transition to clean energy and meet net-zero emissions goals, global investments in grid infrastructure must increase significantly. The International Energy Agency (IEA) has highlighted the need to add or refurbish 65 million kilometres of grid infrastructure by 2024 to align with net-zero emissions by 2050.

The COP 29 Summit will pledge to a collective goal of deploying 1,500 GW of energy storage in the power sector globally by 2030, more than six times the level of 2022, and to pursue efforts towards this goal, such as through: (i) establishing policies and enabling regulatory frameworks that facilitate the adoption of energy storage and support meeting the storage target and addressing barriers faced by storage projects, including double taxation; (ii) accounting for energy storage as a necessary component for grid enhancement and resilience and facilitating the integration of energy storage technologies in power grid planning and operations, as well as the role of standalone storage solutions in addressing the needs of local communities especially in remote and Island areas; (iii) strengthening the capabilities of countries and regions on planning integrated energy systems to appropriately incorporate different energy storage options at different scales of the energy system, alongside other strategies for grid balancing and stabilisation, as well as frequency stabilisation; (iv) promoting technology development and deployment to increase storage efficiency and reduce storage costs through technology improvements and learning effects, and supporting a broad range of storage technologies, including battery storage, pumped hydro storage, mechanical (such as gravity energy storage), clean and sustainable liquids and gases (including hydrogen for long-term energy storage), and thermal storage systems, to enhance technological diversity and supply chain resilience; (v) promoting investments in energy storage technologies, including the development and deployment of storage solutions; (vi) encouraging diversified, sustainable, secure and transparent supply chains for materials and components needed for energy storage, especially battery storage, including sustainable and cost-competitive alternative battery chemistries and materials, and promoting resource efficiency and circularity across the entire life cycle of energy and especially battery storage systems; (vii) encouraging standardisation in consideration of battery design and performance, which in turn could facilitate second- life applications and recycling, as well as grid stability service provision; (viii) strengthening international collaboration in areas essential for market development, standards, sustainable supply chains and delivering finance at scale; (ix) promoting social awareness about the role and benefits of energy storage and increasing education, training and job creation in this field; (x) promoting the equitable inclusion of women, Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and youth in energy storage initiatives, facilitating their active involvement, leadership and access to training opportunities in the sector; (xi) actively engaging and leveraging the capabilities of the private sector and financial Institutions, including philanthropies, to accelerate the development and deployment of energy storage technology.

Global leaders will commit to enhance grid capacity through a global deployment of goal of adding or refurbishing 25 million kilometres of grids by 2023, recognizing analysis from the IEA on the need to add or refurbish an additional 65 million kilometres by 2024 to align with net-zero emissions by 2025, and working to strengthen the electricity grid infrastructure, such as through increasing grid investment;- scaling up considerably grid investment, recalling the analysis that global investment needs to nearly double by 2030 to support the transition to clean energy and help achieve global net-zero emission by 2050.

Other pledges will be as follows: (i) increasing transmission and distribution capacity of existing infrastructure and incorporating grid-enhancing technologies while using batteries strategically to avoid costly and unnecessary grid expansion; (ii) developing policies to address planning, financing, regulatory incentives, digitalisation, supply chains, and capacity building to overcome grid investment challenges; (iii) supporting the integration of renewables: Promoting grid infrastructure that can accommodate the increasing volume of renewable and low-emission/clean energy projects and reduce the backlog of projects waiting to be connected to the grid; (iv) promoting regional integration: Integrating electricity systems at a regional level and between countries to enhance energy security and resilience, improve access to clean electricity, and increase efficiency through economies of scale; (v) investing in advanced technologies: Increasing investments in High-Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission to reduce power losses and support the integration of variable renewable and low-emission/clean energy; (vi) strengthening international cooperation: Partnering with international financial institutions, public and private sector stakeholders, and other relevant stakeholders to address critical bottlenecks, including cross-border interconnections, and build momentum on grid modernisation; and (vii) strengthening social awareness about the role and benefits of grids, increasing education, training and job creation in this field.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024