Session: 03-01: Advances in Indoor Environment Technologies and Solutions

Paper Number: 157709

157709 - Cost Analysis and Standardization for Large Thermal Energy Storage Systems 

Abstract: 

Large-scale thermal energy storage systems play a critical role in integrating renewable energy and decarbonizing energy systems. Such systems facilitate the development of sustainable communities and cities by enabling the implementation of low-carbon district heating and cooling networks that optimize energy utilization and enhance energy resilience. They are particularly valuable for balancing short- and long-term fluctuations in energy demand and supply, stabilizing heating networks and reducing dependence on fossil fuels in heating and cooling systems. However, their adoption remains limited due to significant challenges, especially regarding economic feasibility, which poses obstacles to project implementation.

These difficulties complicate investment decisions and hinder the reliable planning of energy infrastructure by policymakers and energy providers. Existing studies often rely on historical cost data without considering temporal economic changes or market-specific dynamics. For example, the lack of inflation-adjusted or purchasing-power-corrected data creates discrepancies that can mislead stakeholders about the actual investment requirements. Additionally, the omission of residual values in life cycle cost analyses introduces systematic biases, undervaluing technologies with shorter lifespans and overestimating those with longer operational periods. These inconsistencies result in unreliable cost assessments, creating further challenges for both researchers and decision-makers.

This study aims to provide new insights into the costs of large-scale thermal energy storage systems and address these challenges. By adjusting historical cost data to current price levels and incorporating inflation adjustments, purchasing power parity corrections, and the residual value of technologies, this analysis offers a more accurate representation of the economic performance of various technologies over their life cycle. These refinements enable fairer comparisons of storage solutions, support more informed investment decisions, and promote the broader adoption of thermal energy storage systems.

To achieve these objectives, we collected cost data for established technologies, including tank -, pit -, borehole -, and aquifer thermal energy storage, from the literature. We supplemented these data through targeted desk research and adjusted them for inflation and purchasing power parity across England, Germany, the United States, and Switzerland. By creating a comparable baseline, we systematically analyzed the data to define cost functions for the investment costs of these technologies, providing a robust framework for evaluating their economic feasibility.

Our results show that the reported costs of large-scale thermal energy storage systems in the literature deviate by up to 50 percent from our recalculated values. These deviations arise from differing economic conditions and methodological approaches to cost assessment. The findings emphasize the urgent need for standardized cost adjustment methods to improve the reliability of evaluations for large-scale thermal energy storage systems.

By addressing these inconsistencies, our study reduces uncertainties in the assessment of large-scale thermal energy storage systems. It also supports more accurate and comparable cost evaluations, enabling informed investment decisions and fostering the integration of renewable energy into sustainable energy systems.

Presenting Author: Richard Lüchinger Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts Engineering and Architecture

Presenting Author Biography: Mr. Lüchinger is a research associate at the Competence Center Thermal Energy Storage of the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts. He holds a master's degree in business engineering and is a PhD student at the Vienna University of Technology at the Institute of Energy Systems and Thermodynamics (IET). He has extensive expertise in energy economics, innovation research, responsible research and innovation, systems thinking, technology assessment, and seasonal thermal storage development. He is involved in an interdisciplinary project investigating the acceptance and design criteria of seasonal ther-mal storages.