Tysk samarbejde om nye systemer til energilagring

Førende tysk forskningsenheder etablerer ambitiøst samarbejde om udviklingen af fremtidens energilagrings-systemer (in english).

The purpose of the new project center is to develop existing energy storage systems, both mobile and stationary, to the level of industrial maturity, and to demonstrate new solutions at a level of technological maturity of four to six.

The future of numerous sectors of technology and industry hinges, directly or indirectly, on the development of powerful new energy storage systems. The coming generation of electric cars, for example, will require high-performance batteries. Likewise, stationary power storage facilities are needed to help cushion the variations in grid capacity that result from a reliance on fluctuating sources of renewable energy such as photovoltaic systems or wind turbines.

Internationally, Germany already occupies a leading role in materials research and process development for energy storage systems. In working to devise innovative responses to social and ecological challenges and provide efficient, climate-conserving solutions, Fraunhofer ZESS will bolster this position. In so doing, the new project center will draw on the combined expertise of three Fraunhofer institutes and TU Braunschweig as well as profit from a well-established research infrastructure.

Stephan Weil, minister president of the state of Lower Saxony explains:
- Energy storage systems are the missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle. They will ensure that we can provide our industrialized economy with a reliable supply of renewable energy. At the same time, we also require an effective system of energy storage in order to make our transportation and our heating more environmentally friendly. I am therefore delighted to welcome another flagship center for research and development to Braunschweig and Lower Saxony. Fraunhofer ZESS will now be developing innovations in these fields and making them commercially viable.
 
The new project center will be able to exploit synergies between various Fraunhofer institutes, and between them and the Battery LabFactory Braunschweig (BLB) which is part of TU Braunschweig. This in turn will lead to the development of an interdisciplinary field of business with input from several Fraunhofer institutes.

For the first five years, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and state of Lower Saxony are providing startup capital of 20 million euros. This will fund 20 individual projects during this initial period and encourage a concentration of expertise and closer networks between stakeholders in Lower Saxony. Once these primary activities have been established in Braunschweig, the next step will be to set up a satellite demonstrator facility in Peine, also in Lower Saxony.