Sodium-sulfur flow battery cost comparison

What is a sodium-sulfur battery?

Sodium-sulfur batteries are mature electrochemical energy storage devices with high-energy densities. According to Aquino et al. (2017a), they are primarily provided by a single Japanese-based vendor— NGK Insulators—which, to date, has installed 450 MW of the technology worldwide.

How much does a sodium-sulfur battery cost?

Figure 5.1. Example input values for annualized cost calculation for a sodium-sulfur battery. Using these inputs, the total net present value (NPV) of the total cumulative cost for the 1 MW/4 MWh storage system after tax, insurance, and other factors described is calculated to be just over $4 million, of which nearly 71 percent is CAPEX-based.

What are room-temperature sodium-sulfur batteries?

Room-temperature sodium-sulfur (RT Na-S) batteries are a promising alternative for renewable energy storage. They rely on chemical reactions between a sulfur cathode and a sodium anode to store and deploy electrical energy, and they use low-cost materials, which can even be easily extracted from saltwater.

Where are sodium-sulfur batteries made?

Technology and Manufacturing Readiness Levels Sodium-sulfur batteries have been manufactured in Japan since the early 1990s. Since then the technology has been demonstrated at over 190 sites with over 350 MW of capacity installed.

Are redox flow batteries a good choice?

Redox flow batteries, which have several installations, appear to be well positioned, coming in second in terms of overall cost, performance, life, TRL, and MRL. While their RTE is low, there is room for improvement with stack optimization and better flow battery management algorithms.

How much does sodium-sulfur cost?

As a result that limited information was available since then, this value is also used as a data point, with a 10 percent increase accounting for the lower E/P ratio (or higher rate of discharge). An average cost of $ 661/kWh was determined for 2018 sodium-sulfur costs, with a 2025 cost of $ 465/kWh assuming a decrease of 30 percent.