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Increasing Electricity generation from variable renewable energy sources like wind and solar has led to calls for additional storage capacities. The core objective of this paper is to investigate the market prospects of such long-term electricity storages as hydro pump storages, hydrogen and methane from power-to-gas (PtG) conversion technologies. The major conclusion of our analysis is that with respect to all centralized long-term storage technologies the future perspectives are much less promising than currently indicated in several papers and discussions. It will also become very hard for PtG-technologies to compete in the electricity markets despite a high technological learning potential. Yet, for hydrogen and methane there are prospects for use in the transport sector. Fuel prices in transport in recent years have rather increased compared to stagnation or decreases in electricity spot market prices. Consequently, and given in addition the lack of environmentally benign fuels for mobility hydrogen and methane from renewable electricity might become an economically alternative for fueling passenger cars.

Citation: 6th International Conference on Energy Research and Development, State of Kuwait, March 14–16, 2016