Applications: Stationary Energy Storage

Duration Trends

Duration of an ESS is defined as the ratio between energy (MWh) to maximum charge/discharge power (MW).

Duration typically ranges from 1-8 hours for most utility-scale applications, with most new LFP installations at 2 or 4 hours Duration is the inverse of C-Rate (2-hour BESS equates to a C-Rate of 0.5, while 4-hour BESS equates to C-Rate of 0.25, etc.)

Global duration of ESS has steadily increased, driven by falling energy costs, from 1.8 hours in 2020 to 2.5 hours in 2025. Regional differences reflect market design: Markets typically define the earnings of BESS; energy-only markets like Texas and Australia favor 2-hour batteries, where 4-hour requirements in China and California favor those durations. Longer-duration configurations are becoming economically viable due to falling costs, technological breakthroughs, and economies of scale, but have had limited deployments to date (<0.1% by power) Longer-duration unlocks business cases, enabling energy arbitrage, capacity and renewable firming, while still stacking ancillary services. The LDES case is also becoming a competitive alternative.

Source: Main content provided by Wood Mackenzie (Distinguished Partner). For more information, visit https://www.woodmac.com.

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