Revolutionizing Clean Energy: The Arrival of 24-Hour Solar Electricity Through Advanced Battery Technology

Solar Electricity Available Every Hour, Every Day: A Transformative Leap Forward
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### Chapter 1: How Batteries Will Unlock Solar’s True Potential

The concept of 24-hour solar generation is no longer a fantasy; it is becoming a reality. Thanks to advancements in battery technology, providing clean energy around the clock is now both straightforward and affordable. There’s no need for groundbreaking innovations—just the expansion of existing solutions.

Recent progress in battery technology makes it increasingly viable to deliver continuous solar electricity. Modern lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries have revolutionized the grid battery storage market, outperforming Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC) batteries in terms of cost, safety, and longevity.

Round-the-clock solar generation can lead to substantial savings by addressing one of the primary obstacles to clean energy: the need for expanded grid infrastructure. Batteries enable solar energy to be utilized when and where it is most needed, circumventing years of costly grid development. This is particularly crucial for data centers, factories, and remote facilities where access to the grid may be limited or entirely unavailable.

Battery-supported solar provides a quick, flexible solution to grid constraints, allowing clean power to be deployed without the delays associated with grid expansion. Real-world examples are already emerging, from the world’s first gigawatt-scale 24-hour solar project in the UAE to solar-powered data centers in Arizona and Dubai, demonstrating that continuous solar generation is not just a possibility—it is already here.

### 1.1 Why This is a Game Changer

#### 1.1.1 Solar with Battery Can Meet Electricity Demand Anytime

Batteries can reshape solar generation to align with electricity demand throughout the day. This capability unlocks benefits that exceed what solar energy alone can provide. When solar is used without batteries, it can only fulfill electricity needs during daylight hours, necessitating the continued reliance on fossil-fuel power plants and existing grid infrastructure to meet nighttime demand.

Although shifting some electricity usage from night to day can mitigate this dependency, the potential for such adjustments is limited. Other storage technologies, including pumped hydro or long-duration options like compressed air, may assist, but they often lack availability, cost-effectiveness, or scalability.

While solar without batteries still contributes by reducing fossil fuel generation during the day and lowering electricity costs, integrating batteries allows solar energy to be effectively matched with demand. Notably, solar systems equipped with batteries do not need to produce the same amount of power every hour to deliver significant benefits. Even in regions with less sunlight, battery storage can spread solar electricity generation across all hours, resulting in fewer required power plants and less grid infrastructure.

This transformation can significantly alleviate high evening energy prices seen in numerous countries, reduce the necessity for new fossil fuel power plants, and postpone expensive grid upgrades. For instance, in California, batteries met nearly 20% of daily peak loads during evening hours in 2024, effectively displacing gas generation.

#### 1.1.2 Pushing Solar Penetration Higher

Solar energy has become the most affordable electricity source, but its generation is limited to sunny hours. Without storage, solar can only satisfy a portion of a region’s annual electricity demand that occurs during daylight. Batteries eliminate this limitation. With storage, solar’s potential expands beyond daylight constraints, achieving nearly 100% coverage in the sunniest areas.

This presents a substantial opportunity for solar to serve as the backbone of a nation’s electricity system in regions with abundant sunlight. The advantages extend even further for large electricity consumers such as data centers and factories that require stable, constant power. For these users, 24-hour solar generation offers a clean and cost-effective alternative to fossil fuel-dependent grids, making it a practical solution today.

Depending on local grid electricity prices, these consumers can access cheaper solar power through various arrangements, from partial to nearly complete coverage, utilizing onsite solar with batteries or through power purchase agreements (PPAs) with solar-plus-storage systems, especially when land is scarce. In PPAs, aligning supply with consumer demand can also yield financial benefits by reducing exposure to fluctuating market prices.

#### 1.1.3 Bringing Large Savings on Grid Expansions

The case for 24-hour solar generation is further strengthened by its ability to reduce the need for costly grid expansions, a significant challenge in the clean energy transition. Integrating batteries can amplify the impact of a single grid connection, allowing for the installation of up to five times more solar panels using the same grid capacity.

In sunny areas, a single solar panel has an annual capacity factor of 20%. However, if five times as many solar panels are combined with batteries, solar energy generated during the day can be stored and utilized after sunset, effectively boosting that 20% towards a 100% round-the-clock supply.

Currently, grids are becoming bottlenecks for deploying clean power sources, with over 3,000 GW of renewable projects globally stuck in connection queues—more than five times the total renewable capacity installed in 2024 (585 GW). Batteries can help alleviate the need for additional grid investments. Solar and battery systems are emerging as vital components for industrial growth. High-demand electricity consumers like factories and data centers may face challenges in accessing the grid, leading to extended wait times or excessive costs.

Onsite gas power plants, previously considered quick and cost-effective solutions, are losing their appeal, as lead times for new gas plants can exceed three years and construction costs in the U.S. have tripled since 2022, now reaching $2,400 per kW. Other markets are also experiencing upward trends in costs, primarily due to material price inflation. The volatility of fuel prices poses additional risks, especially for gas-importing nations, making solar and battery solutions often the only viable—and clean—option for supporting new industries.

### 1.2 Batteries Have Suddenly Become Cheaper and More Efficient

Battery technology is advancing rapidly, resulting in significant cost reductions. In 2024 alone, average battery prices dropped by 40%, reaching a record low of $165 per kWh for an entire battery system (excluding engineering, procurement, construction, and grid connection costs). Early data from 2025 indicates that this trend is continuing, with auction results in Saudi Arabia showing prices as low as $72 per kWh.

As production scales and efficiency improves, prices are anticipated to decrease further. The rise of Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) technology has marked a pivotal change in grid storage. By 2023, LFP accounted for 80% of all new grid battery installations, driving down costs and enhancing performance. LFP batteries utilize fewer critical minerals (eliminating the need for nickel or cobalt), and safety improvements have significantly decreased fire risks since 2019. These batteries also boast increased longevity, with some manufacturers offering warranties of up to 20 years, greatly enhancing the economics of battery projects, where developers previously sought payback within ten years.

Additionally, innovations are set to improve battery performance further. For example, enhanced container designs allow for denser packing of cells, minimizing land requirements, while better insulation reduces maintenance costs—particularly in hot and arid conditions. Streamlined system integration also lowers installation costs. The next frontier is sodium-ion batteries, with the world’s first grid-scale sodium-ion storage plant recently commissioned, potentially reducing reliance on lithium and further driving down prices.

However, the deployment of grid batteries is still in its early stages. In 2024, 169 GWh of capacity was installed—an impressive increase of 17 times compared to 2020. Nevertheless, this remains small relative to the 599 GW of solar capacity added in 2024. There is sufficient manufacturing capacity globally (1,450 GWh, including EV batteries) to produce over 2 kWh of lithium batteries for every 1 kW of solar panel added based on the 2024 solar capacity additions (585 GW). The availability of low-cost batteries is a game changer for solar energy.

### 1.3 Solar + Battery is Already Happening

Less than five years ago, solar-plus-battery projects were primarily confined to demonstration sites. Today, they are rapidly becoming mainstream commercial solutions for dispatchable solar, with project sizes frequently exceeding 100 MW and being developed globally by both utility solar farms and industrial consumers.

#### 1.3.1 Utility Solar Farms Embrace Larger Batteries

The first gigawatt-scale 24-hour solar project is currently under development in the UAE. The Masdar-led initiative, announced in January 2025, will feature a 5.2 GW photovoltaic plant paired with a 19 GWh battery storage system to deliver 1 GW of uninterrupted power to the grid. Although this project is not yet commonplace, utility-scale solar farms are increasingly integrating large battery systems, either by adding them to existing assets or incorporating them into new designs.

The U.S. is a leading example of this trend—by 2023, 75% of all new solar projects pending grid connection were paired with battery storage. In Hawaii, several solar-plus-battery projects are now supplying electricity at night, following the closure of the last coal power plant in 2022, at a cost between 9 and 13 cents per kWh, significantly lower than oil-generated electricity.

Batteries enable utility solar farms to meet the energy demands of industrial consumers pursuing 24/7 carbon-free electricity—a growing priority for major companies like Google and Microsoft. The 260 MW Sonoran Solar Energy Center in Arizona will incorporate 1 GWh of storage to align with the energy requirements of Google’s upcoming Mesa data center. In Australia, the 500 MW Richmond Valley solar farm, equipped with 2.2 GWh of storage, will support green zinc production.

Battery storage can also allow utility solar farms to expand without necessitating additional grid connection capacity. In Portugal, the 220 MW Algarve Solara 4 is investing 400 million euros to add 50 MW of solar and 150 MW of wind capacity, along with 320 MWh of battery storage. This project will leverage the complementary generation profiles of solar and wind, supported by a relatively modest battery storage solution to deliver electricity around the clock, maximizing the use of the 200 MW connection point.

#### 1.3.2 It Also Makes Sense for Large Electricity Consumers

Solar-plus-battery solutions are increasingly appealing to commercial and industrial electricity users, including behind-the-meter microgrids. These systems help circumvent grid connection delays and reduce exposure to price volatility and outages, creating a strong business case for data centers. A prime example is the 100 MW Moro Hub in the UAE, the world’s largest 100% solar-powered data center, commissioned in 2022 and located within a sprawling solar power facility.

Solar and battery systems can also power highly energy-intensive operations. In West Virginia, a 106 MW solar microgrid project with 261 MWh of storage is set to showcase this capability by powering titanium melting furnaces upon reaching full capacity in 2027. On an even larger scale, Saudi Arabia completed a major tourism project in late 2023, featuring 16 hotel resorts and supporting facilities, all powered entirely by solar energy. This initiative includes a large microgrid with 400 MW of solar capacity and 1.3 GWh of storage and has been operating smoothly for over a year.

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This article details the transformative potential of solar energy when paired with battery storage, highlighting real-world advancements and opportunities in the clean energy sector.