Open Letter Addressing Energy Storage in the National Energy and Climate Plans

The European Association for Storage of Energy (EASE) is the voice of the energy storage community, representing companies and organisations from across the entire value chain. EASE promotes the deployment of energy storage technologies in order to meet the EU’s ambitious decarbonisation objectives while enhancing the flexibility and security of the energy system.

Energy storage can bring numerous benefits to the energy system:

• It supports the integration of variable renewable energy sources into the energy system by helping balance supply and demand across different timescales.
• Energy storage can play a crucial role in increasing the stability and reliability of the electricity network by providing a wide range of system and ancillary services.
• It can act as a complement to grid development, allowing network operators to defer or even avoid investments in transmission and distribution grids.
• It can also aid in decarbonising the heating and cooling and transport sectors.

At EU level, the growing importance of storage was emphasised throughout the whole “Clean Energy for All Europeans” Package, which clarified the regulatory framework for energy storage. In addition, the Commission’s long-term strategic vision for a prosperous, modern, competitive and climate neutral economy clearly recognises storage as having a key role in achieving the EU’s 2050 decarbonisation goals. It foresees a significant expansion of storage capacities in the future.

We believe that the National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs) are an excellent opportunity for Member States to examine the current status of energy storage deployment, assess future flexibility needs, and identify the biggest barriers to storage deployment. Developing a clear strategy to support the development and deployment of storage technologies is essential in order for Member States to achieve their decarbonisation targets for 2030 and beyond.