U.S. energy storage market installed record 1,265 MW in Q1 2024
With positive forecasts ahead and a record setting-quarter behind it, 2024 is set for a banner year, according to a new report from Wood Mackenzie and the American Clean Power Association’s (ACP) latest U.S. Energy Storage Monitor report.
In all, the United States deployed 1,265 MW of energy storage in the first quarter of the year – the high watermark to date. For comparison, it represented an 84 percent increase from Q1 2023. In grid-scale alone, the industry launched 993 MW – another record – largely thanks to Nevada, California, and Texas, which combined accounted for 90 percent of new grid-scale capacity. Residential was no slouch either, though, with a record 250 MW deployed – an 8 percent increase over the previous record set in Q4 2023.
“The rapid growth of the energy storage industry comes at a critical time, providing a solution to growing energy demand and increasingly variable weather conditions that are placing added stress on the grid.” John Hensley, vice president of markets and policy analysis at ACP, said. “A strong start to 2024 sets expectations high for the remainder of the year. We look forward to celebrating the industry’s first double digit installation year and cheering the tight race for top storage state playing out between California and Texas.”
When the year closes out, Wood Mackenzie and ACP predicted that grid-scale installments would reach 11.1 GW installed – a 45 percent increase year-over-year. Texas could finally overtake California for new capacity installed as well, as price volatility grows and renewables and load growth surge in its less regulated marketplace.
Still, California tripled its number of residential energy storage numbers between the same period in 2023 and 2024.
The community, commercial, and industrial (CCI) segment painted a less rosy picture of things. In California, this segment remained stagnant and both New York and Massachusetts saw down quarters that brought about one of the slowest periods for CCI in years. Even there, researchers sounded optimistic, though, noting that any slowdown would likely be mitigated by new projects expected to come online through 2025.
Storage costs are falling due to lithium cost declines and global supply chain dynamics, and that means tailwinds for the industry. Through 2028, the report predicted the U.S. energy storage market could reach 75 GW deployed across all segments. A pipeline increase in announced projects also set the cumulative volume of new additions tat 62.2 GW through 2028.
