<
https://reneweconomy.com.au/stunning-growth-of-battery-storage-puts-it-at-centre-of-global-energy-security-needs-for-cars-and-for-grids/>
"The stunning growth of battery storage technologies is expected to accelerate
even further in coming years as the world looks to renewables and storage to
boost energy security for both their car fleets and their electricity grids.
According to Benchmark Market Intelligence global lithium ion battery demand
increased by 29 per cent in 2025 to reach 1.59 TWh, with grid scale batteries
being the big mover with a growth of 50 per cent to 300 gigawatt hours, with
2026 expected to show even stronger growth to around 500 gigawatt hours.
Iola Hughes says the demand for lithium ion batteries – for both electric
vehicles that currently dominate the market – and for grid scale battery
installations will be heightened by the war in the Middle East and the renewed
focus on energy security.
“The EV market is still growing very quickly …. and it’s really impressive to
how quickly energy storage is becoming a driving factor of lithium demand, and
in 2026 we’re expecting that story to continue,” Hughes says in the latest
episode of
Renew Economy’s weekly
Energy Insiders podcast.
By 2030, Hughes says lithium ion battery demand could surge to around 3.5
terawatt hours across the EV, energy storage and other battery demand
applications, with global production likely to reach 4 terawatt hours, nearly
double the current production rates.
She says the Iran war is already having an impact on the grid scale storage
market, particularly in the Asia region which has been so dependent on fossil
fuel imports for its energy supplies.
“These are countries which are being very heavily reliant on imports from the
Middle East, and ultimately, it kind of brings to the forefront the topic of
energy security, and renewables and storage are seen as a key pillar of that.”
And Hughes points to the surge in solar installations in Pakistan in the last
energy crisis in 2022, and for residential storage in Germany after the
invasion of Ukraine. “I think there’s a strong argument for residential storage
to see an uptick because of this (the Iran war).”
Battery storage, because of its falling costs, has been the most successful
technology in terms of grid-scale installations in the last few years, and the
success of the federal government’s home battery rebate has seen a huge surge
in installations.
As Tristan Edis from Green Energy Markets reports, the installation of home
batteries in Australia in the month of March accounts for around 10 per cent of
global grid scale battery installations, an extraordinary number."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
