Batteries now cheap enough to deliver solar when it is needed

Kostantsa Rangelova, Global Electricity Analyst at Ember, said: “After a 40% fall in 2024 in battery equipment costs, it’s clear we’re on track for another major fall in 2025. The economics for batteries are unrecognisable, and the industry is only just getting to grips with this new paradigm.”

This marks a major shift in how quickly battery storage has become affordable and how close it is to providing reliable clean electricity that can be delivered when it is needed.

The research assesses the cost of a full battery storage system connected to the grid as only $125/KWh as of October 2025. This is for long-duration (four hours or more) utility-scale battery projects in global markets outside China and the US. Core battery equipment delivered from China now costs around 75 $/kWh, while installation and grid connection typically add about 50 $/kWh.

This has pushed down the price of storing electricity. The Levelised Cost of Storage (LCOS) is assessed at just $65/MWh, based on the $125/KWh capital cost and real world project assumptions of financing costs, lifetime, efficiency and degradation. The low LCOS is not only the result of cheaper batteries – longer lifetimes, higher efficiencies and lower financing costs supported by clearer revenue models like auctions have all helped to push the LCOS down sharply. Ember has developed a live calculator (to be published on the same day as this report) that allows users to work out the LCOS using their own assumptions.