A new report identifies energy storage management system market drivers and barriers, details the vendor landscape, and provides case studies and sales forecasts.

The U.S. market for energy storage management systems, which are software suites designed to increase the operating efficiency and overall value of energy storage, will grow tenfold between 2014 and 2019. According to GTM Researchs latest report, Energy Storage Management Systems 2015-2019: Applications, Players and Forecast, the market for this software will reach $136 million by 2019.

The market is intrinsically tied to energy storage deployments, which GTM Research and ESA recently forecasted would reach 860 megawatts in 2019.

"As energy storage proliferates, many users -- especially non-utility users -- are learning that they cant just put batteries and power control systems together to create value," writes report author James Belcher.

Originally designed to monitor the health and safety of energy storage deployments, storage management systems are now being expanded to include optimization and economic gain.

"The real value in energy storage management systems," writes Belcher, "lies in achieving peak performance on a given application -- and in using them for the most valuable available application at any given time. The algorithms that determine in real time what a battery is used for are the key to unlocking that value."

As these applications become more complex and widespread, there are opportunities for intelligent software to be used not just in managing energy storage systems, but also in effectively communicating with the grid and following grid signals in real time, notes GTM Research Senior Energy Storage Analyst Ravi Manghani. He describes the result as a "system of systems" in which energy storage is an extension of the grid and interfaces with it seamlessly.

Behind-the-meter applications for energy storage management systems include demand-charge reduction, energy arbitrage, peak shaving, and use in microgrids. Front-of-meter applications such as time-shift, capacity, ancillary services, upgrade deferral, and power quality management require the use of energy storage management systems.

Although the market opportunity for energy storage management systems is substantial, "the expertise required to compete is high, and players will need to add to that expertise and evolve with the market," writes Belcher.

"The vendor ecosystem consists of a few pure play software-centric companies, but the majority are power electronic vendors and system integrators," said Manghani.

The new report identifies energy storage management system market drivers and barriers, details the vendor landscape, provides case studies, and forecasts sales on both sides of the meter. Learn more about the new report here.

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