Description
2016 was an important year in the transition of our global energy system. Following the Paris Climate Agreement, increased momentum to boost the deployment of renewable energy has also led to greater interest in energy storage. The new International Energy Agency (IEA) strategic direction builds on this development and the work of the Technology Collaboration Programmes (TCPs) within the IEA Energy Technology Network has gained further importance. The updated Energy Conservation through Energy Storage (ECES) Strategic Plan (2016-2021) provides guidance on our TCP priority areas for the coming years. We continue to have good relations with the various IEA bodies and our request for Programme extension was approved by the Committee on Energy Research and Technology (CERT) in February 2016. We also participated at the annual meeting of Building Coordination Group, held an energy storage workshop in conjunction with the Working Party on Energy End-Use Technologies (EUWP), and provided input to the IEA 2016 World Energy Outlook.