SLBC Article

Synergy Consulting, Inc. shares its view on BESS.

The cost of utility-scale batteries has fallen by two-thirds over the past decade. Global battery storage investment is now nearing that of gas-fired power generation, demonstrating remarkable growth from approximately $1 Bn in 2015 to an expected $66 Bn in 2025. Installed capacity is projected to surge from ~90 GW in 2023 to ~850 GW in 2030 (IEC data).

This growth is driven by the rising integration of renewable energy, the need for grid stabilization, and government carbon reduction policies.

Recently, a major Middle Eastern government offtaker launched its first group of utility scale standalone battery projects, with Synergy honored to advise on the procurement process. To ensure high bankability and project sustainability for the success of the projects, special attention was given to the RFP design.

In 2025, Australia has emerged as the third largest utility battery market in the world, with BESS expanding rapidly to support the transition to renewable energy across the country.

Several news articles suggest that India is also setting up large-scale BESS projects.

China produces a large amount of PV. Large technology giants such as Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL) in China are coming up with new technologies for the most efficient and dense form of batteries.

While the battery market has been working with lithium ion for some time, it is dependent on the mining of lithium.

In the past few months, CATL has announced work on sodium battery (Infrastructur News September 2025), with sodium extracted from normal salt, present in large quantities in the oceans. These sodium batteries are expected to be superior to lithium batteries (to be market proven).

Overall, the costs are coming down, the batteries are becoming better, and in several countries, the governments are committing to reducing emissions or for Net 0 carbon.

This entails the governments going for renewable energy to achieve their goals. We expect to see large-scale battery projects in the coming five to 10 years.

Considering that setting up PV plants has become significantly cheaper and batteries are on a similar footing, batteries provide a viable alternative to produce renewable energy.

There are predictions of power demands going out of bounds the world over because of AI related networks. The battery projects could mitigate the ensuing energy demand supply crisis.

Looking ahead, we anticipate tremendous growth in utility-scale battery projects – both standalone and coupled with renewables. As countries pursue a greener future, batteries are essential for closing the reliability gap created by renewable energy deployment. Battery technology is still rapidly evolving, with newer technologies entering the market. Continued production scaling will lead to further cost reductions, making the future of BESS project development highly promising.