The right storage for your needs

Younicos is principally open to all types of technology. We generally use the storage technology best suited to individual needs. Presently, we are working with three particularly reliable, durable, safe and commercially viable battery technologies which we also combine in hybrid batteries. We have established close partnerships with the leading providers of each technology.

The three winners

We evaluated the currently 27 most promising storage technologies at one of our predecessor companies in 2005, focusing on durability, reliability, safety, economic viability as well as future cost-reduction potential. We looked at a wide variety of technologies, including mechanical storage such as flywheels and compressed air storage. 

However, as a result, we decided to focus on three electrochemical storage technologies: Lithium-Ion, Sodium-Sulphur and Vanadium-Redox-Flow.

High energy or high power?

All three technologies are particularly long-lasting, reliable, safe, economically viable and can be implemented today. Their quick response time makes them especially suited to balancing volatile power generation within milliseconds:

  • Lithium-Ion high-power batteries: The Lithium-Ion technology used by us has a very high ratio of power to energy making it particularly suited for grid stabilization applications that often require energy only to be stored for up to a couple of minutes or hours. There are many different kinds of Lithium-Ion technologies and there is also a wide range of suppliers. We use the cells of a large international manufacturer that come with a 20 year performance guarantee.
  • Sodium-Sulphur high-capacity batteries: Sodium-Sulphur batteries have a large storage capacity. These high temperature batteries are well suited to balance the daily fluctuations of wind and sun power. Since the founding of Younicos, we have been cooperating closely with the Japanese company NGK. Their Sodium-Sulphur batteries have an especially high energy density as well and a very high number of life-cycles. Globally this is the only industrially produced large battery that has been tested in daily use for over 13 years.
  • Vanadium-Redox-Flow batteries do not self-discharge. That makes them ideally suited to store energy over long periods. Since this energy carrier does not age or wear, the batteries have an almost unlimited durability with very limited maintenance required. Power and energy capacity can be scaled independent of each other according to need.

Hybrid batteries – the ideal combination

The exact requirements for a storage unit vary depending on the specific application it is used for. This is true for many properties of different battery technologies, but particularly relevant for ration of power to energy. In both Sodium-Sulphur and Lithium-Ion batteries that ratio is predetermined by the
cell architecture. 

That’s why we combine different technologies in hybrid batteries, if required
by the project. This is what makes us unique. It allows us to combine the advantages of different technologies. Because storage tends to be the largest cost item in our systems, it also distinctly increases the cost-effectiveness for our solutions.

We make batteries intelligent

In addition to knowledge of and access to the best technologies currently on
the market, our competence lies in connecting the direct current (DC) energy source of batteries to grids running on alternating current (AC). We have many years of experience handling battery chemistry and are experts in battery management.

Above all, we make batteries intelligent and enable them to communicate. Only by combining them with inverters that run on our software are batteries capable to automatically react to changes in energy demand. We also developed storage units that use the new international IEC 61850 standards to communicate with other participants in the grid, such as power plants.

Exclusive access

We’ve been working closely with leading battery producers for years and have developed intensive relationships with leading manufacturers of the technologies we use. This gives us quick, sometimes even exclusive access to exactly the right storage for your needs.