Systems in depth

One section per system: its state at evidence close, its exposures and what the operational series will watch.

9 min read0 figures5 tables24 notesNR-XTECH-STORAGE-GLOBAL-2026-BASELINE

Contents

8.1Cells, chemistries and storage technologies

Storage uses several technologies. Evidence is strongest for lithium-ion batteries and pumped storage, and weakest where claims rest on vendor announcements or secondary summaries.

108GW

battery storage added worldwide, 2025¹

≈90%

lithium iron phosphate share of deployments¹

≈80%

utility-scale share of 2025 additions¹

Table 8.1State at baseline
Component	State	Evidence	Status
Lithium iron phosphate batteries	about 90% of deployments, up from well below half five years ago	¹¹⁹	Reported
Pumped storage hydropower	installed cost USD 153 per kWh; round-trip efficiency of 70 to 80%; pumped storage was the largest storage type in 2023 by capacity	²¹⁷¹⁶	Reported
Sodium-ion batteries	a producer reported 175 Wh per kg for its 2025 line; field data not bound	¹⁸⁴⁷	Reported
Flow batteries and iron-air systems	a 100 MW, 400 MWh vanadium system began operating in China in 2022; compressed air plants run in Germany, the United States and China; one vendor claims up to 100 hours	²⁰²¹¹³	Reported

Couplings

ENE ↔ FIN deployment and cost
MIN → ENE materials
INF → ENE safety and siting

Evidence to bind in 2027

long-duration deployment by technology
field performance on a common basis

Related editions

GLB Global Systems
GS-02 Energy
SR-04 Critical Minerals and Strategic Materials
XT-12 Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology
XT-14 Fusion and Frontier Energy
XT-17 Climate Technologies and Carbon Management

8.2Grid role, energy and water

Batteries shift solar output into the evening and are moving from short ancillary services toward energy shifting. Water and cooling use is not published on a common basis.

≈25%

utility-scale solar paired with batteries, 2025²

14%

new solar generation shifted by installed batteries, 2025⁴

45GW

battery backup power additions for data centres, 2025¹

Table 8.2State at baseline
Component	State	Evidence	Status
Solar pairing	about a quarter of utility-scale solar commissioned in 2025 was paired with batteries	²	Reported
Solar shifting	installed batteries could shift about 14% of new solar generation; Chile and Australia over 50%	⁴	Reported
Duration	most projects cluster around two hours; more are four hours or longer	¹	Reported
Water use	not published for pumped storage and thermal systems	¹⁷	Expert input

Couplings

ENE → CLI solar shifting
ENE ↔ INF facility siting
AIC → ENE backup power

Evidence to bind in 2027

water use by technology
grid service performance data

Related editions

GLB Global Systems
GS-02 Energy
SR-04 Critical Minerals and Strategic Materials
XT-12 Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology
XT-14 Fusion and Frontier Energy
XT-17 Climate Technologies and Carbon Management

8.3Minerals, materials and supply chain

Cells depend on lithium, graphite and cobalt, and on refining that is concentrated. Lithium prices almost doubled from January 2025 to April 2026.

290thousand tons

world lithium mine production, 2025⁵

73%

cobalt mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo⁶

82%

China share of natural graphite production⁷

Table 8.3State at baseline
Component	State	Evidence	Status
Lithium	production up 31% in 2025; batteries are 88% of end use	⁵	Reported
Cobalt	export quotas of up to 96,600 tons a year for 2026 and 2027	⁶²⁴	Reported
Graphite	preliminary antidumping duty of 93.50% on Chinese anode material in the United States	⁷	Reported
Refining	top refined supplier share averaged about 72% across energy minerals in 2025	⁸	Reported

Couplings

MIN → ENE materials
TRD → MIN export controls
FIN → MIN processing investment

Evidence to bind in 2027

cell capacity by country
recycled volumes against targets

Related editions

GLB Global Systems
GS-02 Energy
SR-04 Critical Minerals and Strategic Materials
XT-12 Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology
XT-14 Fusion and Frontier Energy
XT-17 Climate Technologies and Carbon Management

8.4Economy, investment and workforce

Costs fell sharply in 2025 and deployment rose. Investment totals and workforce numbers are the thin parts of the evidence.

140USD per kWh

installed cost, four-hour battery, 2025²

45%

fall in battery costs in 2025, Ember measure⁴

≈30%

fall in installed cost in 2025, IRENA measure²

Table 8.4State at baseline
Component	State	Evidence	Status
Installed cost	fell about 30% in 2025 to USD 140 per kWh	²	Reported
Battery cost index	Ember reports a fall of 45% in 2025 and 20% in 2024	⁴	Reported
Outlook	the IEA stated policies scenario adds over 700 GW of battery storage from 2024 to 2030	⁹	Scenario
Workforce	skills gaps reported; no figure bound	²⁶	Expert input

Couplings

FIN → ENE scale-up
MIN → FIN input prices
HLT → ENE workforce

Evidence to bind in 2027

investment totals
workforce size and skills gaps

Related editions

GLB Global Systems
GS-02 Energy
SR-04 Critical Minerals and Strategic Materials
XT-12 Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology
XT-14 Fusion and Frontier Energy
XT-17 Climate Technologies and Carbon Management

8.5Safety, regulation and governance watch

The nearest governance questions for storage are fire safety, battery passports, recycled content and trade measures. Rules exist, and several dates fall in 2026 and 2027.

2027date

EU battery passport from 18 February¹⁰

2031date

recycled content targets for cobalt, lead, lithium, nickel¹⁰

9 Oct 2025date

China announced battery supply chain export controls⁸

Table 8.5State at baseline
Component	State	Evidence	Status
Battery regulation	Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 applies from 18 February 2024; safety documentation for stationary systems	¹⁰¹¹	Reported
Safety standards	system safety, fire propagation testing and installation codes exist	³⁰³¹³²	Reported
Incident record	one 2025 fire at a 300 MW, 1,200 MWh plant, from a secondary summary	¹⁴	Reported
Trade measures	export controls announced in 2025; some suspended until November 2026	⁸	Reported

Couplings

INF → ENE safety and siting
GOV → DAT battery passport
GOV → TRD trade measures

Evidence to bind in 2027

incident rates on a common basis
status of delegated acts

Related editions

GLB Global Systems
GS-02 Energy
SR-04 Critical Minerals and Strategic Materials
XT-12 Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology
XT-14 Fusion and Frontier Energy
XT-17 Climate Technologies and Carbon Management

Notes

Numbers are the edition’s reference numbers, so a note reads the same in every chapter. The full list, with every source and its licence, is in Annex C. Annex C, references

1IEA (ed.), Global Energy Review 2026, section Technology: Battery storage (108 GW of new battery storage deployed in 2025, 40% more than in 2024; about 80% utility-scale; lithium iron phosphate about 90% of deployments; China about 60% of additions; battery-based UPS additions up 30% to 45 GW). International Energy Agency, Paris. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
19Wikipedia contributors (eds.), Lithium iron phosphate battery (energy density, cycle life, market share reports). Secondary summary, weak evidence. Wikimedia Foundation, San Francisco. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
2IRENA (ed.), Renewable Power Generation Costs in 2025, 2026 (installed cost of four-hour utility-scale battery storage about USD 140 per kWh, down close to 30%; total installed cost by storage technology; solar paired with batteries). International Renewable Energy Agency, Abu Dhabi. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
17Wikipedia contributors (eds.), Pumped-storage hydroelectricity (round-trip efficiency of 70 to 80%; world capacity about 200 GW in 2025 attributed to the hydropower association). Secondary summary, weak evidence. Wikimedia Foundation, San Francisco. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
16Wikipedia contributors (eds.), Grid energy storage (pumped storage and battery capacity in 2023 from an IEA dataset). Secondary summary, weak evidence. Wikimedia Foundation, San Francisco. Observation year 2023. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
18Wikipedia contributors (eds.), Sodium-ion battery (energy density figures; producer announcements of 2025; cost claims marked as needing update). Secondary summary, weak evidence. Wikimedia Foundation, San Francisco. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
47UNVERIFIED, not opened: CATL (ed.), announcement of the Naxtra sodium-ion battery brand, April 2025, known only from a secondary summary; the company news page was fetched but no article was read. Contemporary Amperex Technology, Ningde. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
20Wikipedia contributors (eds.), Flow battery (vanadium system of 100 MW and 400 MWh in Dalian, 2022). Secondary summary, weak evidence. Wikimedia Foundation, San Francisco. Observation year 2022. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
21Wikipedia contributors (eds.), Compressed-air energy storage (Huntorf, McIntosh and Zhangjiakou plants). Secondary summary, weak evidence. Wikimedia Foundation, San Francisco. Observation year 2022. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
13Form Energy (ed.), Battery technology page (iron-air system described as able to discharge for up to 100 hours). Vendor statement, weak evidence, not independently tested. Form Energy, Somerville. Observation year 2026. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
4Ember (ed.), Global Electricity Review 2026, 21 April 2026 (battery costs down 45% in 2025 after 20% in 2024; deployment up 46% to an estimated 250 GWh; 14% of new solar generation shifted). Ember, London. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
5USGS (ed.), Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Lithium (world mine production 2025, end uses, prices, reserves). US Geological Survey, Reston. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
6USGS (ed.), Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Cobalt (Democratic Republic of the Congo share, export quotas 2026 and 2027, import reliance). US Geological Survey, Reston. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
7USGS (ed.), Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Graphite (Natural) (China share of production, anode material imports, preliminary duties). US Geological Survey, Reston. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
24Wikipedia contributors (eds.), Cobalt (Democratic Republic of the Congo production share quoted at different values from cited sources). Secondary summary, weak evidence. Wikimedia Foundation, San Francisco. Observation year 2024. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
8IEA (ed.), Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2026 (revised version, July 2026; concentration of refining, lithium price rise from January 2025 to April 2026, China export controls of 9 October 2025, LFP share of battery energy storage). International Energy Agency, Paris. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
9Wanner, B. (IEA), Batteries and Secure Energy Transitions, presentation slides, Energy Storage Summit, London, 18 February 2025 (slides summarising the IEA special report of 2024; storage capacity needed for tripled renewables; stated policies battery additions to 2030; lithium demand measures). International Energy Agency, Paris. Observation year 2024. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
26UNVERIFIED, not opened: US Department of Energy (ed.), Long Duration Storage Shot, launched 2021, cited from memory; the page address returned not found. US Department of Energy, Washington. Observation year 2021. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
10European Parliament and Council, Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 concerning batteries and waste batteries (full text; battery passport from 18 February 2027; safety of stationary battery energy storage systems, Article 12; recycled content targets). Official Journal of the European Union, Luxembourg. Observation year 2023. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
11European Commission (ed.), Batteries (policy page; Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 in force 17 August 2023, applies from 18 February 2024; Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/606 of 4 July 2025 on recycling efficiency). Directorate-General for Environment, Brussels. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
30UNVERIFIED, not opened: UL Standards and Engagement (ed.), UL 9540, Energy Storage Systems and Equipment, third edition 2023, cited from memory; the catalogue page showed no document text. UL, Northbrook. Observation year 2023. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
31UNVERIFIED, not opened: UL Standards and Engagement (ed.), UL 9540A, Test Method for Evaluating Thermal Runaway Fire Propagation in Battery Energy Storage Systems, cited from memory. UL, Northbrook. Observation year 2019. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
32UNVERIFIED, not opened: National Fire Protection Association (ed.), NFPA 855, Standard for the Installation of Stationary Energy Storage Systems, 2023 edition, cited from memory; the page showed only the title. NFPA, Quincy. Observation year 2023. Accessed 2026-11-03.back
14Wikipedia contributors (eds.), Moss Landing Power Plant (fire of 16 January 2025; 300 MW and 1,200 MWh phase; about 1,200 residents evacuated). Secondary summary, weak evidence. Wikimedia Foundation, San Francisco. Observation year 2025. Accessed 2026-11-03.back

Cite this chapter

Valadbaygi, S. (Ed.). (2026). Chapter 8: Systems in depth. In Exponential Technology Report 2026: Advanced Energy Storage (Baseline Edition 2026, Report No. NR-XTECH-STORAGE-GLOBAL-2026-BASELINE) [Draft under review]. The Global Centre for Risk and Innovation (GCRI).

Every citation form of the whole report, BibTeX and RIS included, is on the edition home. Cite this report

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Systems in depth

8.1Cells, chemistries and storage technologies

Couplings

Evidence to bind in 2027

Related editions

8.2Grid role, energy and water

Couplings

Evidence to bind in 2027

Related editions

8.3Minerals, materials and supply chain

Couplings

Evidence to bind in 2027

Related editions

8.4Economy, investment and workforce

Couplings

Evidence to bind in 2027

Related editions

8.5Safety, regulation and governance watch

Couplings

Evidence to bind in 2027

Related editions

Notes

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