UK Government reinforces commitment to energy storage by visiting Cumulus
UK Secretary of State for Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), Amber Rudd, this week visited Tesla, Cumulus Energy Storage and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, to gain insight about how the Government can best create a dynamic UK energy innovation ecosystem and a commercialization pipeline for disruptive energy storage technologies.
This visit is particularly appropriate because California is the first state to mandate energy storage. Setting a target of 1.3GW of energy storage in California by 2020 has already driven an expansion of infrastructure for energy storage innovation, including publicly funded demonstrator units, plus $100s of millions investment in advanced education and fundamental research in the public and private sector.
Cumulus Energy Storage is an innovative company developing the lowest cost grid-level energy storage battery using Copper/Zinc technology. This is designed for the high energy/long duration energy storage market, suitable for Commercial Renewables Generation, Infrastructure and Electricity Intensive Industry markets. This contrasts with the high power/short duration energy storage typically provided by Lithium Ion batteries and other technologies. Cumulus has R&D in Oakland, California and is establishing battery manufacturing in Sheffield, UK. Cumulus therefore has an insight into both UK and US energy storage markets.
UK’s DECC has already created an impressive portfolio of energy storage companies such as Cumulus, many of whom are now ready for match-funded demonstration projects in order to prove their technology at commercial scale. Leveraging investment in these companies from the DECC innovation fund has potential to realise the energy storage dividend for UK plc, through increased manufacturing capacity, global export capability and better energy management.
Secretary of State Rudd said:
“We are tackling a legacy of under-investment and building a system of energy infrastructure fit for the 21st century, and I want to see storage play a big role in that. Cumulus’s innovative work on energy storage, supported by Government funding, will help to develop this technology of the future, driving energy efficiency, unlocking skills and creating jobs.”
Part of the ‘secret sauce’ of Silicon Valley’s ecosystem appears to be the virtuous cycle of Valley-based universities employing Professors who have been successful entrepreneurs and investors to educate business students. This is reinforced with a networking environment that encourages people with diverse backgrounds to ‘collide’ and stimulate innovation.
In the UK, Sheffield University is creating this ecosystem at the Advanced Manufacturing Park by integrating the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre with Boeing, the energy storage expertise.
Enabling Renewable Electricity
Cumulus Energy Storage Ltd, AMP Technology Centre, Advanced Manufacturing Park, Brunel Way, Rotherham, S60 5WG, UK.
Tel: +44(0)1709 367794
Web: www.cumulusenergystorage.com
Company registered in England and Wales 08149485
Cumulus Energy Storage Inc., 2220 Livingston Street, Suite 200/5, Oakland, CA 94606 US Tel: +1(510) 374 4593 provided by Professors Hall and Stone, an incubator hub for Cleantech businesses at the AMP Technology Centre and the skills development facilities at apprentice, graduate and doctoral level.
Establishing other such ecosystems across the UK, together with continuous government seed-funding of disruptive energy technology companies through to demonstrator stage, will help create this dynamic UK energy innovation ecosystem and a strong commercialisation pipeline of low-carbon technology companies able to deliver the portfolio of energy storage solutions.