Why Alberta--and all of Canada--need energy storage

Energy storage is transforming the way we manage electricity, and Alberta is at a critical juncture in redesigning its electricity market and transmission policy to deliver more affordable, reliable, clean power. With costs dropping significantly, energy storage is becoming more accessible than ever, providing essential market, grid, and flexibility services. The Canadian Renewable Energy Association (CanREA) is leading the charge, hosting the Energy Storage Alberta--CanREA Summit to explore the important role of energy storage in Alberta.

Key Takeaways:

• Energy storage is a key technology that can help Alberta deliver more affordable, reliable, clean power, and its costs are dropping significantly.
• Energy storage can provide essential market, grid, and flexibility services, including saving electricity, or time-shifting for future use, peak demand management, renewable energy integration, ancillary services, grid stability, frequency regulation, backup power, and resilience.
• In Canada, new energy storage projects, propelled by Indigenous equity partners, are reaching commercial operation ahead of schedule and under budget, showcasing impressive potential for growth in the industry.
• The Canadian Renewable Energy Association (CanREA) is leading the charge in promoting energy storage in Alberta, hosting the Energy Storage Alberta--CanREA Summit to discuss the challenges and opportunities in the sector.
• The summit will explore how to get storage built and operate it efficiently once it is in service, addressing key topics such as the new electricity market and transmission policy, supplying Alberta's growing population and industries, and the main barriers to building energy storage in Alberta.
• Energy storage can provide enormous value to the Alberta electricity system, but it requires viable revenue streams and reduced market, policy, and regulatory barriers to make it possible to finance new projects.

Statistics:

• In less than 15 years, battery costs have fallen by more than 90%, one of the fastest declines ever seen in clean energy technologies (OECD, 2024).
• The cost of energy storage is declining rapidly, making it more accessible than ever.
• The Canadian Renewable Energy Association (CanREA) expects significant growth in the energy storage industry, driven by the need for flexible, scalable, climate-resilient infrastructure.

Sources:

• OECD, 2024, Batteries and Secure Energy Transitions, IEA, Paris https://www.iea.org/reports/batteries-and-secure-energy-transitions, Licence: CC BY 4.0
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