How to invest in battery cabinets to save electricity

“When the battery storage assets detected that drop in frequency, they ramped up their output milliseconds later,” explains Markuz Jaffe, an investment companies analyst at Peel Hunt. “This really speaks to the value they have on the grid.”

The other advantage is the US federal government's generous subsidy regime. Under the Inflation Reduction Act, utility-scale energy storage projects can access investment tax credits worth around one-third of capex if construction begins by the end of 2024.

By the end of the decade, the consultancy Rystad Energy predicts that the UK will have some 24 gigawatts (GW) of battery storage installed – with enough energy in reserve to power 18mn homes for a year.

There are currently a handful of ways for UK-based retail investors to gain exposure to this prospective battery boom. Smart Metering Systems (SMS) derived around 12 per cent of cash profits (Ebitda) from its battery storage assets last year, a proportion that's likely to grow in the future.

The grid operator was also able to call on nearly 300MW of battery storage put in place by other organisations. “When the battery storage assets detected that drop in frequency, they ramped up their output milliseconds later,” explains Markuz Jaffe, an investment companies analyst at Peel Hunt.

While Harmony Energy Income is entirely UK-focused, it has been anticipating the saturation of the ancillary services market since its IPO. It therefore chose to install two-hour duration batteries, which are better suited to trading activities, across its portfolio.