About 92% of energy industry professionals surveyed in the latest Industry Insights research by DNV, a leading independent expert in risk management and assurance, agreed that accelerating solar-plus-storage in the next five years will be crucial for boosting the efficiency and resilience of global energy networks.
"Combining solar and storage also opens a wide range of possibilities to provide 100% renewable energy for society in a reliable and cost-efficient way. It's important that we act fast for the collective good, remove barriers for clean energy and plan for long-term progress," said Ditlev Engel, CEO of Energy Systems at DNV.
Another research by DNV forecasts that solar will grow 20-fold globally by 2050, and solar installations are increasingly being integrated with dedicated storage solutions. Approximately 20% of all solar PV installations will incorporate dedicated storage within the next ten years. While by the midpoint of this century, the proportion is expected to increase to 50%.
The forecast also shows that despite the current higher costs, solar-plus-storage holds a capture price advantage over standard solar PV plants. By 2038, the capture price advantage of solar-plus-storage over regular solar PV plants will surpass the cost disadvantage on a globally averaged basis.
Respondents working in the solar industry clearly see investment in storage as a priority. Around two-thirds of them currently have business interests that generate revenue in this sector, and 56% of them plan to increase their investment in the upcoming year.
In terms of barriers that hinder growth, 63% of respondents stated the sector is experiencing a labor shortage. 62% revealed that their organization is finding it increasingly difficult to attract employees with the required skills for the energy transition.
Moreover, 47% believe that inadequacy, delays or surprises in public policy denote the biggest risk to their organization's near-term success. Yet reforms to permitting and licensing processes are critical to meeting net-zero targets, stated 87% of solar industry respondents.
Though barriers ahead, digital tools that speed up the implementation and management of solar-plus-storage projects will help to drive the uptake of this technology, according to Industry Insights research.
