The growth of energy storage installations in the USA in the second quarter of 2024

The second quarter of 2024 proved to be a strong period for the energy storage market in the United States. According to a report published by the American Clean Power Association (ACP) and Wood Mackenzie, more than 3,000 MW of energy storage capacity was installed during this period, marking a 74% increase compared to the same period last year.

Growth Across All Market Segments

The data shows that, in Q2, 2,773 MW of capacity and 9,982 MWh of energy storage were installed in the grid-scale segment. Other market segments also saw growth: the community (CCI) segment grew by 61% to 87 MWh, and the residential segment grew by 12% to 423 MWh. Globally, a total of 3,011 MW and 10,492 MWh were installed, making this the second-highest quarter in history, second only to Q4 2023, which reached 13,437 MWh. The majority of investments were made in California, Arizona, and Texas, which accounted for 85% of the installations.

Experts note that while the residential segment showed growth, the pace of expansion was slower, mainly due to stagnation in California and low installations in Hawaii and Puerto Rico.

Key Drivers of Growth

John Hensley, Vice President of Market Analysis and Policy at ACP, emphasized the importance of energy storage for grid stability and cost-effectiveness. With growing energy demand and extreme weather events, additional storage capacity is becoming crucial. However, to continue this trend, issues related to long wait times for interconnections, as well as permitting and site location challenges, need to be addressed.

Forecast for the Future

According to Wood Mackenzie’s five-year forecast, total energy storage deployments in the U.S. are expected to increase by 42% between 2023 and 2024, and then continue to grow steadily at around 7.6% per year from 2025 to 2028. The grid-scale segment is expected to grow by 32% year-over-year, with a total deployment of 11 GW/32.7 GWh by the end of 2024.

Despite these positive forecasts, experts predict that market growth may stabilize between 2025 and 2026 due to delays in project capacity. Specialists also highlight that the CCI segment still faces high growth barriers, such as the complexity of project execution and limited availability of financial value streams.

Source: www.woodmac.com