Swiss energy storage tower

Is Switzerland able to store energy?

The global challenge is not only to produce more energy from renewable sources, but also to be able to store it. With its hydroelectric power plants in the Alps and innovative projects, Switzerland is contributing to the search for solutions for the efficient, long-term storage of electricity.

Does Energy Vault have a storage tower?

Energy Vault's storage tower. Source: Energy Vault Energy Vault has raised USD 100 million (EUR 85m) in Series C funding to support deployments of its gravity-based energy storage technology, which will start in the US in the fourth quarter of 2021, the Swiss company said on Wednesday.

How would a tower storage system work?

The storage system would work by stacking thousands of blocks in concentric rings around a central tower, which would require millimeter-precise placement of the blocks and the ability to compensate for wind and the pendulum effect caused by a heavy weight swinging at the end of a cable.

How does energy storage work?

Energy storage offers one way out of this bind. By converting electrical energy into a different form of energy—chemical energy in a lithium-ion battery, or gravitational potential energy in one of Energy Vault’s hanging bricks—you can hold onto that energy and deploy it exactly when you need it.

Can Energy Vault solve the problem of electricity storage?

Energy Vault will have to show over the coming months that it has an efficient and competitive system. Piconi, who has worked for a number of multinationals, believes his team can solve the problem of electricity storage. “There are great expectations around the world, seeing as no-one has been able to meet this challenge so far.

Can energy storage be stored by hefting heavy loads?

It's meant to prove that renewable energy can be stored by hefting heavy loads and dispatched by releasing them. Energy Vault, the Swiss company that built the structure, has already begun a test program that will lead to its first commercial deployments in 2021. At least one competitor, Gravitricity, in Scotland, is nearing the same point.