How will batteries and fuel cells help to decarbonise electricity grids?

The Committee will have an in-depth discussion with experts, including representatives from the Energy Systems Catapult and Ofgem, to understand the potential scale of deployment, and the support required in terms of supply chains, funding and regulations. The Committee will also explore current demonstration projects of new technologies, and the interactions with other energy vectors such as hydrogen.

These evidence sessions can be followed live at www.parliamentlive.tv from 10am tomorrow (Tuesday 18 May 2021).

Witnesses

10am

• Nick Winser CBE, Chair, Energy Systems Catapult
• Professor Tim Green, Co-Director, Energy Futures Laboratory (EFL); and Deputy Head, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Imperial College London
• Dr Keith MacLean OBE, Director, Providence Policy
• Dr Jane Dennett-Thorpe, Deputy Director, Net Zero Transmission, Ofgem

Possible questions

• What assessment has been made of the extent to which energy storage will be needed to balance generation and demand out to 2050, and to what extent would this involve batteries or fuel cells?
• What interactions do you foresee between electricity systems and other energy vectors (e.g. hydrogen or ammonia), and what role would batteries and fuel cells have in these interactions?
• What is needed to support large-scale deployment of batteries and fuel cells for grid applications (e.g. research, supply chains and manufacturing capacity)? Does this need to be in the UK, and is the UK supporting this sector?
• How is development and deployment of these technologies financed, and who will ultimately pay for them and by what means?
• What policy and regulatory changes would be needed to facilitate the deployment of these technologies at the scale needed to meet the 2050 net-zero target?