"I’d put my money on the sun and solar energy. What a source of power! I hope we don’t have to wait until oil and coal run out before we tackle that.” - Thomas Alva Edison to his friend, Henry Ford, 1931
Spin forward to 2025 and while the importance of renewable energy is no longer a subject of debate, the extent to which we have successfully developed truly sustainable modes of energy production remains uncertain. The combined share of wind and solar energy in global electricity generation in 2023 was only 13.4%. The primary reason is the variable and intermittent nature of renewables which makes it difficult for grid operators to match demand and supply.
In this context, energy storage solutions, connected batteries, and battery energy storage systems (BESS) are useful alternatives to traditional sources of energy and are some of the fastest responding ways to provide additional power capacity. These solutions can be deployed in residential, commercial and industrial spaces, and in large-scale grids. They allow residential and commercial users to store energy and use it at a later time, when their renewable sources aren’t generating sufficient energy or if the grid goes down.
This blog explores why energy storage systems are important and the benefits of deploying IoT to support these systems. There is a detailed report on connected batteries that we just published and can be read here: Connected Batteries: 213 million battery devices driven by falling costs and growth in renewable energy. In addition, Energy Storage is one of the key Domains of Change identified in our Green Energy Tech sector report.
There are several benefits of energy storage systems which make them an important part of the energy landscape, as discussed below.
For power companies, battery storage systems help keep the electricity grid stable and reliable. They can store extra energy when too much electricity is being produced and release it when demand is high. This helps balance supply and demand in real time and helps prevent overloads.
Battery storage also makes it easier to use more renewable energy like solar and wind. For example, the UK government has said that using battery storage could help add more clean energy to the grid and save up to GBP40 billion (about USD48 billion) by 2050.
Smart batteries can store electricity when prices are low and use it (or sell it) when prices are high. This helps save money and can even generate extra income.
Deploying disruptive digital technologies like IoT in battery systems offers significant advantages by enhancing safety, improving performance, enabling real-time monitoring, supporting efficient maintenance, and promoting sustainability.
Safety remains a critical concern for battery solution providers. Most storage systems rely on lithium-based batteries, which are vulnerable to thermal runaway if temperatures exceed safe limits. IoT applications can measure the temperature of these batteries in real time and trigger alerts when thresholds are breached. This helps prevent failures or fire hazards.
IoT enables continuous data collection on charging and discharging cycles, allowing for optimal battery management. This helps prevent overcharging and deep discharging of individual cells. This, in turn, reduces degradation, improves performance, extends battery life, and lowers operating costs. Remote monitoring of temperature, load, and condition also supports accurate prediction of remaining battery life, enabling proactive replacement before failure occurs.
IoT systems allow users to track real-time energy flow from batteries, analyse production versus consumption, and develop personalised energy usage trends. For instance, smart sensors can help in comparing and optimising grid-sourced and self-generated power, which enables smarter energy decisions.
IoT enables remote connectivity, which allows technicians to diagnose and resolve battery system issues over the air, reducing the need for on-site service visits and minimising downtime, improving efficiency and saving monetary resources as well.
IoT also enables sustainability, through smart energy management which focuses on monitoring the production and consumption of energy. Since this enables better controled and optimised energy usage, it avoids wastage of energy.
Low Power Wide Area (LPWA) technologies like NB-IoT and LTE-M in particular are helping to grow the connected battery market. They allow manufacturers to monitor batteries at a low cost, making it easier to connect more devices. In areas where LPWA isn’t available or where higher data speeds are needed, regular mobile connections are still widely used.
Batteries used indoors or on the go often connect using Wi-Fi, Zigbee, or Bluetooth. Larger batteries, such as those used in power grids or microgrids, often use wired connections. These fixed connections ensure steady and reliable data flow which is important for monitoring these more complex assets and when it's crucial to avoid any downtime.
Connected batteries, powered by IoT, are revolutionising how energy storage systems are monitored and managed. By enabling real-time data collection, remote diagnostics and predictive maintenance, they help reduce downtime, optimise performance, and extend battery life. Furthermore, connectivity technologies like NB-IoT, LTE-M, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth support various use cases. Overall, IoT is making battery systems smarter, more reliable, and more responsive to the growing demands of modern energy infrastructure.
