The cost of electricity from flywheel energy storage

Equipment cost distribution for the flywheel energy storage systems. FESSs are used for short-duration power applications. Therefore, power capital cost ($/kW) could be a useful parameter to compare the economic feasibility of energy storage systems for similar power applications.

The costs of a power converter for composite and steel flywheels are $49,618 and $52,595, respectively. The cost difference is due to the difference in rated power, 100 kW for the composite flywheel and 108 kW for the steel flywheel. Fig. 5. Equipment cost distribution for the flywheel energy storage systems.

Utility-scale energy storage systems for stationary applications typically have power ratings of 1 MW or more . The largest flywheel energy storage is in New York, USA by Beacon Power with a power rating of 20 MW and 15 min discharge duration .

The steel rotor flywheel has a lower capital cost and levelized cost of storage. The costs of composite and steel rotor flywheels are $190 and $146/MWh, respectively. Flywheel energy storage systems are increasingly being considered as a promising alternative to electro-chemical batteries for short-duration utility applications.

Electro-chemical ESSs can be used in short-duration services, , but they suffer from a short lifetime and the need to dispose of toxic materials, . Flywheel energy storage systems (FESSs) are a promising alternative to electro-chemical batteries for short-duration support to the grid .

However, almost no bottom-up research has been done, i.e., research that considers the technical parameters to size the components of a flywheel storage system, estimate cost parameters based on the design, and provide a probable distribution of the total investment cost and levelized cost of storage.