The EU is a proud champion of renewable energy. By 2023, almost a quarter of all the energy we consumed came from renewable sources – double the share in 2010, when it sat at 12.5%. Building on this progress and to keep the momentum, in 2023, EU countries set the binding target of achieving a share of at least 42.5% renewables in the energy mix by 2030.
Harnessing the energy of abundant renewable sources like the wind, the sun and our rivers offers a sustainable and crucial alternative to burning fossil fuels – allowing us to produce our own clean, secure and affordable energy in Europe. In 2024, almost half of our electricity needs could be covered from renewables. As we decarbonise our economy, the electrification rate needs to pick up significantly, and so will demand for storage solutions.
While renewable energy sources can’t be depleted in the same way as fossil fuels, they are ‘variable’, meaning their availability fluctuates. It is therefore important that we invest in technologies that help address this. That’s where energy storage solutions, such as batteries, have a vital role to play. Technological developments and market uptake have already had a positive impact on the storage sector: the costs of battery storage are down by 93% since 2010, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).
Hydropower: a leading storage solution
Pumped storage hydropower is the largest energy storage technology globally. It works by pumping water into reservoirs when there is an electricity surplus in the grid, for example on a sunny or windy day, and releasing it to generate electricity when more energy is needed.
46 GW capacity of pumped storage hydropower is installed in the EU, amounting to almost a quarter of the total global installed capacity.
Furthermore, from 2019 to 2021, EU companies were responsible for 29% of high value hydropower inventions globally.
The world’s growing demand for batteries
Although your smartphone, power bank or kitchen clock is likely to spring to mind when you think of batteries, you may be surprised to learn that consumer electronics made up only 2% of global battery deployment distribution in 2023. Meanwhile, mobility applications (such as electric vehicle batteries) and stationary energy storage systems accounted for 86% and 12% respectively. This paints a clear picture of the effect that the energy transition and electrification are having on driving global battery demand.
According to the International Energy Agency, the average global demand in the energy sector, for both electric vehicle (EV) batteries and storage applications, for a single week in 2024 exceeded the total demand for an entire year just a decade earlier. In this context, the sector reached the historical milestone of 1 TWh in battery demand in 2024.
Here in the EU, according to the quarterly report on European electricity markets, more than 620 000 new electric vehicles (EVs) were sold in the passenger car segment in the first 3 months of 2025. This marks a record high for the first quarter of any year and is 15% higher than the same quarter last year, translating into a 21% EV share in the EU passenger car market.
Securing the EU’s battery supply
The global battery sector is intensely competitive. According to the 2025 report from the Commission’s Clean Energy Technology Observatory, in 2023, the EU accounted for 8% of the global Li-ion battery production capacity, contributing an estimated 90 000 direct jobs to the EU economy, up from 61 000 in 2022. This being said, the EU still relies on imports to meet 50% of its demand, with approximately 83% of global Li-ion battery production capacity situated in China in 2023.
In this respect, the EU is determined to close the gap with China and the United States and assert itself as a global leader in this key industry.
As part of these efforts, in July 2025, the Commission announced a total of €852 million in strategic investments in 6 pioneering EV battery cell manufacturing projects, in the form of grants from the Innovation Fund. This followed the Commission’s 2023 announcement to strengthen the EU’s battery manufacturing capacity by allocating up to €3 billion in targeted support to incentivise investment in domestic EV battery cell manufacturing capacity to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers.
The EU’s Batteries Regulation, which entered into force 2 years ago, helps ensure that Europe’s ambition on batteries does not come at an environmental cost. It contributes to the EU’s circular economy and zero pollution ambitions and strengthens our strategic autonomy on batteries.
Novel energy storage solutions
Beyond batteries and pumped storage hydropower, the EU ranks second, after the U.S., in the number of companies developing novel energy storage technologies and leads in liquid air energy storage.
From 2019 to 2021, the EU submitted 277 invention claims, with 54% considered high value, while China submitted 5 000 claims, of which 3% were high value. Nonetheless, both regions exhibit similar levels of high value inventions.
A lack of reliable data represents a challenge in analysing emerging energy storage markets. The Commission’s European Energy Storage Inventory can help address this gap within Europe. Launched in March 2025, it is the first European-level tool of its kind, providing a real-time dashboard of energy storage levels in Europe, offering energy storage data across a full range of technologies. Why not navigate the interactive map and find out where your nearest energy storage project is located?
