Canada Is Missing A Massive Battery Storage Opportunity

October 15, 2026 | Electrification, Canada

Katye Altieri says battery deployment is outpacing government plans as falling costs strengthen the case for solar, storage and domestic energy security

Canada is giving battery storage too little attention as falling costs and rapid global deployment reshape electricity markets, according to Ember researcher Katye Altieri.

In an interview with Energi Media, Altieri said the research organization found no official Canadian national storage target in its assessment of plans for 2030. Its tracker instead relies on an older Canadian energy scenario.

“It’s a missed opportunity from a government perspective,” she said, adding that Canadians also stand to benefit from cleaner, affordable and reliable electricity.

Batteries Outrun Government Planning

Ember’s report finds that combined national storage targets have nearly tripled since COP29, reaching 822 gigawatts. They still fall well short of the international pledge to reach 1,500 GW by 2030.

Actual construction is moving faster than those national commitments require. Global storage additions reached 118 GW in 2025, including 108 GW of batteries.

Annual battery additions increased seventeenfold over five years. Altieri said batteries moved from roughly ten gigawatts of annual installations to more than one hundred in four years, compared with nine years for solar.

China and the European Union account for about eighty per cent of the combined 2030 targets Ember tracks. Other markets, including the United States, are installing batteries without comparable national targets.

Solar And Storage Strengthen Energy Security

Batteries allow electricity generated during sunny hours to serve demand later in the day, reducing curtailment and improving the usefulness of solar generation.

Altieri pointed to California’s success shifting daytime solar electricity into the evening. She also challenged the assumption that Canada’s climate leaves little room for these technologies, noting successful applications in Nordic countries.

Energy security has become a central motivation for renewable investment, she said. Countries can use domestic solar and wind resources to reduce exposure to volatile imported fuel prices and geopolitical disruptions.

Equipment imports still involve global supply chains. However, buying generating equipment differs from continuously importing the fuel needed to operate an electricity system.

Planning Must Follow The Economics

Lithium-ion batteries remain dominant despite growing interest in sodium-ion and other technologies. Altieri said substantial cost declines are already supporting deployment with commercially available equipment.

The challenge is increasingly how to integrate storage with generation, transmission and changing demand.

“The economics for storage are fantastic, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s being installed in the right places,” she said.

National targets can help governments coordinate investment, identify locations where batteries offer the greatest value, and give investors clearer signals.

The report makes a case for clearer direction while acknowledging that market forces already drive construction.

Canada Faces A Different Electricity Future

Altieri cautioned against assuming that Canada’s historical electricity strengths will automatically meet future needs.

Expanding the system requires decisions about new resources, infrastructure and technologies. Past reliance on established sources does not settle those choices.

She also suggested that pressure for change can come from households seeking affordable solar and battery systems, better grid access and regulations that enable adoption.

For Canada, the issue is whether planning recognizes the technologies changing electricity economics elsewhere. Altieri argues storage deserves a much larger role in that discussion as governments prepare for growing demand and a more electrified economy.