| Energy storage
used in power quality applications due to the high costs associated with keeping the superconducting coils below their critical temperature, the advent of high temperature superconducting materials is opening up the possibility of larger scale, efficient energy storage.
Converting electrical energy to gravitational potential energy for storage is a well-
established principle in the form of pumped hydropower. This same principle is now also being put into practice using weighted electric winch systems housed in vertical shafts (for example former mine shafts). At times of excess supply, electrical energy is used to raise a weight via an electric motor. When the energy is needed in the grid, the weight is lowered, driving a generator. This technology
has the advantages of being relatively cheap and very long-term.
Backed by crowdfunding, UK-based Gravitricity has recently secured patent protection in the US for its efficient, gravity- based energy storage system, US11965490B2, which offers a large storage capacity per shaft and enables a continuous flow of power input and output.
Iron and salt: a winning combination for long-duration storage?
Inlyte Energy has announced a major performance milestone for its innovative iron– sodium battery technology, achieving over 80% round-trip efficiency in third-party cycle testing, including auxiliaries – which the company
describes as a “significant breakthrough for long-duration energy storage.” Southern Company research and development is expected to deploy the first integrated system in Q4 2025, seen as a critical step towards broader commercial adoption. This will be the first utility demo of the technology, with a Southern Company team preparing to operate an Inlyte iron-sodium battery installation located near Birmingham, Ala. Evaluation will last for at least one year and will be a critical phase of product validation. Results will be shared across a broad network of utilities, in collaboration with EPRI. The third-party cycle testing results were independently validated by HORIBA MIRA. The performance milestone “positions Inlyte’s battery as a highly efficient, domestically sourced alternative to lithium- ion systems for stationary energy storage”, the company says.
Inlyte Energy module during testing. Photo: Inlyte Energy
The tests, conducted at HORIBA MIRA’s UK facilities, evaluated performance under realistic cycling and abuse scenarios. Results confirmed
the battery’s “exceptional performance, safety, durability, and simplicity,” according to Inlyte Eenrgy. The results build upon Inlyte’s iron–sodium cell-level performance findings, which demonstrated stable performance of 90% efficiency and no capacity loss after more than 700 cycles. The new battery-level results demonstrate realised performance from the integration of 100 iron–sodium cells and associated auxiliary control systems. In support of scaling US manufacturing, Inlyte recently announced a strategic partnership with HORIEN Salt Battery Solutions, the world’s largest producer of sodium metal chloride batteries. This collaboration accelerates domestic production, with commercial deliveries targeted for 2026.
Inlyte Energy delivers breakthrough iron- sodium battery technology enabling safe, sustainable, and domestically produced long-duration energy storage. “With simple ingredients — iron and salt — and innovative design,” Inlyte says it is “reshaping energy storage.”
The future is grid forming, says Huawei
Grid forming is a central feature of Huawei’s energy storage offerings and was emphasised by the company in presentations at Intersolar Europe 2025, Munich, in May with the theme “Smart PV & ESS: powering a grid forming future.” Steven Zhou, President of Smart PV & ESS Product Line, Huawei Digital Power, described the company’s strategic goal of integrating “4T” technologies (bit, watt, heat, and battery) to provide the energy infrastructure for new power systems and introduced key Huawei “value propositions”, including “all-scenario grid forming”, with grid forming technology “applied to power generation, transmission, distribution, and consumption to ensure the long-term stability of new power systems.” Steve Zheng, President of Smart ESS
Business, Huawei Digital Power, presented Huawei’s “next-generation all-scenario Smart String Grid Forming ESS Platform”, which is designed to address challenges in renewables grid integration and ESS safety. Huawei believes the platform “defines the gold standard of grid-forming capabilities”, able to adapt to any BESS state of charge status and any grid short circuit ratio. The technology has already been applied to a 1.3 GWh ESS and 400 MW PV facility in Saudi Arabia (part of the Red Sea development). The project is said to be the world’s largest PV+ESS microgrid, powering consumers with 100% renewable energy. The microgrid has been running stably for more than 18 months, Huawei reports. In China, a 30 MW PV + 6 MW/24 MWh ESS project in Ngari is employing Huawei’s
“Smart PV+ESS Solution”. This “fully grid- forming power plant” is located at high altitude (about 4600 m) with extremely low temperatures and weak grid conditions.
ESS+PV in Saudi Arabia, Red Sea project. Photo: Huawei
www.modernpowersystems.com | June 2025 | 23
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