Germany 's battery opportunity

Germany possesses a strong pipeline of grid-scale and residential battery projects, but current policy frameworks and the preferential treatment of gas in upcoming capacity auctions risk slowing deployment. The report highlights that operationalizing the existing battery pipeline could have significantly reduced wind and solar curtailment and associated costs in 2025. It calls for a regulatory shift to treat batteries as a first-order solution for grid stability and flexibility.

• Germany's large-scale battery capacity grew rapidly, reaching over 2.5 GW by the end of 2025, which is more than double the 1.2 GW capacity from two years prior. Germany currently accounts for approximately 25% of the EU's total large-scale battery capacity.
• The existing pipeline of 10.5 GW / 26.3 GWh of large-scale battery projects could have reduced 2025 wind and solar curtailment by about one-third, potentially saving €0.8 billion in redispatch costs (€613 million) and avoided gas purchases (€219 million). The estimated annual investment required to achieve these savings is €145 million over the technology's lifetime.
• Germany has Europe's largest residential PV-plus-battery market with over two million systems installed. A survey indicates that 30% of homeowners are considering a battery purchase within five years, which could increase the number of residential battery users to seven million by 2030.
• While energy storage is the technology of highest interest among surveyed German mayors, significant barriers exist: 60% of administrations have poor or no knowledge of the technology, 72% report tight budgets, and 97% identify local challenges regarding grid access.
• The report warns that the Electricity Supply Security and Capacity Act (StromVKG) and the grid package may preferentially treat gas in capacity auctions starting in September 2026, which could lock Germany into fossil gas import dependency and expose the economy to geopolitical price shocks.

APA

Petrovich, B., Mewes, C., & Heberer, L. (2026). Germany 's battery opportunity. Ember. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2026/05/Germanys-battery-opportunity.pdf

Chicago

Petrovich, Beatrice, Clara Mewes, and Leonard Heberer. Germany 's battery opportunity. Ember, 2026. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2026/05/Germanys-battery-opportunity.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Petrovich |first1=Beatrice |last2=Mewes |first2=Clara |last3=Heberer |first3=Leonard |title=Germany 's battery opportunity |publisher=Ember |date=13 May 2026 |url=https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2026/05/Germanys-battery-opportunity.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{petrovich2026germany, author = {Petrovich, Beatrice and Mewes, Clara and Heberer, Leonard}, title = {{Germany 's battery opportunity}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2026}, month = may, url = {https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2026/05/Germanys-battery-opportunity.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }