Battery storage appears to be entering a period of exponential growth in the U.S., where a total 3.5 GW/4,727 MWh of new storage capacity was installed in 2021. According to consulting firm Wood Mackenzie, this set a new record and marked the first time storage installations have exceeded 2 GW in a single year.

Grid-scale projects totaling 3 GW/9.2 GWh accounted for most of the installations, but private and residential projects contributed 436 MW due to growing demand in areas that have experienced energy instability, including California, Puerto Rico and Texas. California is forecast to remain the largest residential storage market, with three-and-a-half times more storage installed annually in 2027 compared to 2021.

U.S. annual energy storage deployments across all market segments, 2016-2021. Source: Wood Mackenzie U.S. Energy Storage Monitor

Despite such growth, the grid-scale market did not meet expectations in 2021, with supply chain challenges delaying more than 2 GW of capacity into 2022 and 2023. Supply chain pressures and delays within interconnection queue processing are projected to persist through 2024.