About ESA
Electricity Storage Association (ESA) is an international trade association established to promote the development and commercialization of competitive and reliable energy storage systems.
FOUNDING
ESA was originally founded in 1991 as the Utility Battery Group (UBG) and was made up of eight founding utilities. This group was open to all organizations involved in batteries for electric utility storage applications. In addition to the utility members, the organization soon included suppliers, system engineers, and facilitators, such as EPRI and the U.S. Department of Energy. The organization focused on presentations on technical and project progress in the world of utility storage.
In 1996, the name of the organization was changed to Energy Storage Association to reflect the fact that technologies other than batteries, such as flywheels, ultracapacitors, and superconducting magnetic energy storage were also important in a utility storage context. In 2001, the name was again changed to Electricity Storage Association to highlight the emphasis on technologies that was stored electricity after it was generated. During this transitional period, Dr. Philip Symons was the ESA Chairman, and his leadership and guidance was critical in setting the organization on a path for growth. Each year, ESA presents the Phil Symons Electricity Storage Award in his honor to a recipient for contributions to the advancement of electricity storage.
MEMB
ERSHIP
Membership is open to corporate entities and individuals who support the mission of ESA.
ADVOCACY COUNCIL
This year, the Advocacy Council was developed to engage in federal and state legislative and regulatory advocacy efforts on behalf of ESA, which are designed to promote the development and commercialization of competitive and reliable energy storage delivery systems within the United States.
WORKING GROUPS
All members of the ESA have the opportunity to participate on two working groups. The Technical Working Group draws on the technical aptitude of the members and provides a forum to review and develop the technical information needed to support the efforts of the organization. The Communications Working Group provides a forum to develop and review messaging materials to address the issue of how to communicate about electricity storage to a variety of audiences.