Recently, the Office of Electricity (OE) of the US Department of Energy released a report titled "Realizing the Promise of Low Cost, Long Term Energy Storage", which is part of the Department's "Energy Earth Plan" aimed at promoting the development and commercialization of sustainable technologies. Its goal is to reduce the electricity cost of LDES by 90% between 2021 and 2030 (i.e., the energy storage cost of a 100MW 10 hour energy storage system is less than $0.05 per kilowatt hour).

In the preface of the report, Gene Rodriguez, Assistant Secretary of OE, wrote, "This report is an example of OE's pioneering research and development efforts aimed at driving the development of next-generation energy storage technologies and preparing for the future needs of our national power grid

This report describes the analysis and evaluation of 10 different energy storage technologies in the categories of electrochemistry (such as flow batteries, sodium ions, lithium ions, zinc, supercapacitors), chemistry (hydrogen), mechanics (pumped storage and compressed air), and thermal energy.

The US Department of Energy's Office of Electricity has found that flow batteries and two types of mechanical energy storage technologies can achieve the $0.05 cost (LCOS) target of the Energy Earth Program by the end of the decade.

At the same time, the report provides an in-depth analysis of the future development path of flow batteries, pointing out that new active electrolytes, scalable mass production manufacturing technologies, and accelerated discovery cycles of battery indicators and materials will be the three core innovation points driving the performance leap and rapid cost reduction of flow batteries. These innovations can not only enhance the market competitiveness of flow batteries, but also drive technological innovation and cost-effectiveness in the entire energy storage industry to new heights.

Three potential innovative energy storage technologies to drive long-term energy stability costs by 2030

Source: "Realizing Low Cost, Long Term Energy Storage Promise" by the US Department of Energy (OE)

The report also suggests that a comprehensive layout should be made in the research and development field, focusing not only on the three core innovation points mentioned above, but also covering multiple dimensions such as ion exchange membrane research and development, supply chain optimization, power electronic equipment innovation, and electrode/bipolar plate improvement, to build a "technical barrier" for flow batteries.

This report from the Office of Electricity (OE) of the US Department of Energy emphasizes the critical role of long-term energy storage technology in ensuring the safe and stable operation of the power system and improving system flexibility, while highlighting the importance of reducing energy storage costs.

Since its establishment, Zhonghe Energy Storage has been committed to the research and development, manufacturing, and application of long-term energy storage technology for flow batteries. The company effectively solves current market pain points and resource problems by improving stack power density, developing high-performance and low-cost PBI ion exchange membranes, and developing resource rich and low-cost sulfur iron electrolytes, in order to reduce the installation cost and lifetime electricity cost of flow batteries. The cost reduction strategy of neutralization and energy storage is more consistent with the cost reduction development path of liquid flow battery mentioned in the OE report, which is progressiveness and forward-looking in the research, development and application of liquid flow battery technology.