EU Research Project StoRIES: Roadmap for Hybrid Energy Storage Strengthens Europe's Energy Independence
Karlsruhe – For an energy system based on renewable sources, storage solutions that can provide energy flexibly and on demand are a critical pillar. This was the starting point for the European research project StoRIES, coordinated by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), which has contributed to making Europe's energy supply more resilient and independent.
No Energy System Without High-Performance Storage
The volatility of renewable energies is considered one of the greatest technical challenges of the energy transition. Battery storage, thermal storage and hydrogen technologies each address different requirement profiles: batteries are suited for rapid load changes in the power grid, thermal storage for industrial heat processes, and hydrogen primarily for long-term storage. The project's central finding: no single technology will be able to meet all future requirements of the energy system. Based on this analysis, the researchers developed a technology roadmap and a strategic research and innovation agenda. "With StoRIES, we have set impulses along the entire value chain – from materials to systems to integration into the energy system," says Professor Stefano Passerini, project leader at the Helmholtz Institute Ulm (HIU).
Hybrid Storage Concepts for Ports, Heavy-Duty Transport and Remote Regions
On this basis, the researchers examined concrete application scenarios. They developed combined storage concepts for the electrification of ports and heavy-duty transport, for supplying remote regions with renewable energy, and for repurposing fossil fuel power plant sites as storage and flexibility hubs. For buildings and industry, approaches were created that intelligently couple electricity, heat and hydrogen. "Only the intelligent combination of different storage solutions enables an energy system that is simultaneously flexible, stable and climate-neutral," explains Dr. Myriam E. Gil Bardají, deputy project coordinator at KIT. Olga Sumińska-Ebersoldt from HIU, one of the project's initiators, emphasizes the practical added value: "Hybrid storage not only offers technical advantages, but also helps to use existing infrastructure efficiently and to better integrate renewable energies into everyday life."
250 Research Institutions, Three Summer Schools, One European Network
Beyond the technological results, StoRIES has built lasting structures for European energy storage research. The project network encompasses 250 research institutions, specialized laboratories and test environments. More than 100 early-career researchers participated in summer schools in Nicosia, Rome and Trondheim; mentoring programs and online courses complemented the training programme. The European Commission recognized StoRIES as one of the landmark projects of the European Green Deal. "The networks, strategies and training formats created within the project will have an impact far beyond its duration and strengthen Europe's capacity for innovation with regard to sustainable energy systems," says Dr. Holger Ihssen from the Brussels office of the Helmholtz Association.
Outlook
With its technology roadmap and strategic innovation agenda, StoRIES leaves behind concrete planning foundations for research, policy and industry. Whether the concepts developed will now feed into follow-up projects or directly into EU funding programmes may well determine how quickly hybrid storage systems can become a load-bearing pillar of European energy infrastructure.
Source: IWR Online, 01 Jun 2026