Beyond Backup: Batteries Becoming Revenue Engines for Businesses
May 05, 2026
Beyond Backup: Batteries Becoming Revenue Engines for Businesses
Contact Info:
Monica Niehaus
Business Development – Melink Solar
mniehaus@melinksolar.com
Beyond Backup: Batteries Becoming Revenue Engines for Businesses
Battery storage is one of the fastest-growing sectors in the energy industry, experiencing ~60% annual growth rates the past two years. Alongside solar, U.S. battery storage is surging to fill the gap left by retiring coal plants and shrinking fossil fuel capacity.
Batteries are no longer just serving as backup power. They’re becoming revenue-generating assets, paying utility customers to stabilize the grid in real time.
Battery Energy Storage Systems, oftentimes referred to as BESS, combined with solar, allow organizations to store excess energy generated during the day for use at night or during peak demand hours. By storing energy when solar power is abundant, businesses can tap into that energy during times when the sun isn’t shining, or during grid-intensive hours when it is expensive to use utility power
What does the future hold for BESS?
Source: Rystad Energy US Power Solution
How is BESS being used across industries? Value isn’t just about how much energy a battery can store. It’s also about how quickly and when it can discharge power. The faster the response, the more opportunities the system has to generate savings and participate in revenue-generating grid services.
When evaluating battery storage solutions, it’s important to consider factors like energy and resiliency needs, peak usage times, available space, and the existing solar setup.
Load Shifting vs. Peak Shaving
To effectively manage energy consumption, it’s essential to understand the differences between peak shaving and load shifting. Both strategies aim to reduce energy costs, but they do so in different ways.
Demand Response and Frequency Regulation
In participating markets such as PJM (the region’s grid operator) battery owners can generate revenue by connecting their battery to the grid. Demand response is an event-based dispatch of the battery to either charge or discharge depending on what the grid is signaling for. These events can last a few minutes up to a few hours. When the grid is forecasting a capacity constraint to meet a future peak, the battery will discharge to power the site, lowering the utility load and freeing up the grid demand. The opposite is true if the grid forecasts excess capacity, the battery will charge to pull power from the grid. This grid/market participation generates revenue for the battery owner.
Frequency regulation is like demand response but operates quicker and more frequently, often sub-second signals, and ideal operating profile for a battery. A battery that is tied to the grid and participating in frequency regulation charges and discharges in very short windows helping the grid stabilize frequency oscillations. Think of frequency regulation as cruise control in your car. You set cruise control to 60mph and the vehicle automatically adjusts acceleration and braking to stabilize at 60mph. The grid operates at 60Hz, a battery in frequency regulation mode will charge and discharge to help the grid stabilize at 60mph. Like demand response, participation in frequency regulation is a revenue generator for the customer as you are offering support to the grid and utility.
There are incentive programs for real-time load reduction. Deploying advanced software solutions (interacting with the grid) can maximize the economic value of BESS. Demand response is a scheduled reduction in energy use during peak events. Frequency response is an instantaneous, automated reaction that keeps the grid stable, second by second.
When determining the ROI of BESS, it is important to understand the capabilities and savings that can be incorporated in your project. By storing excess energy, businesses can reduce reliance on the grid, lower energy costs, and ensure a continuous power supply even when the sun isn’t shining.
At Melink Solar, we have experience integrating battery systems of different scales across various industries. A few examples include Kent State University, Cities, LinkedIn, egg farms in Hawaii and fairgrounds in Cape Cod. Contact us if you would like to unlock more operational efficiency for your organization.
Contact Info:
Monica Niehaus
Business Development – Melink Solar
mniehaus@melinksolar.com
Beyond Backup: Batteries Becoming Revenue Engines for Businesses
Battery storage is one of the fastest-growing sectors in the energy industry, experiencing ~60% annual growth rates the past two years. Alongside solar, U.S. battery storage is surging to fill the gap left by retiring coal plants and shrinking fossil fuel capacity.
So, what’s the buzz around BESS? Battery Energy Storage Systems, or BESS, enable businesses to reduce utility demand charges by lowering peak power spikes, store excess solar production, and serve as back-up power with the ability to work in tandem with other pre-existing back-up power assets. This integration maximizes the use of renewable energy, reducing reliance on the grid.
Batteries are no longer just serving as backup power. They’re becoming revenue-generating assets, paying utility customers to stabilize the grid in real time.
Battery Energy Storage Systems, oftentimes referred to as BESS, combined with solar, allow organizations to store excess energy generated during the day for use at night or during peak demand hours. By storing energy when solar power is abundant, businesses can tap into that energy during times when the sun isn’t shining, or during grid-intensive hours when it is expensive to use utility power
What does the future hold for BESS?
- Energy experts indicate “explosive growth” over the next 10 years as coal plants retire.
- The graph below from Rystad Energy indicates an increase in renewable power capacity, driven by solar (yellow) and batteries (purple).
- Years 2010 – 2025 highlights solar growth, while 2025 – 2035 shows the addition of battery growth along with solar.
- Data centers and more electrification will require more demand, straining the US grid. Meanwhile, gas remains the main power generation source.
Source: Rystad Energy US Power Solution
How is BESS being used across industries? Value isn’t just about how much energy a battery can store. It’s also about how quickly and when it can discharge power. The faster the response, the more opportunities the system has to generate savings and participate in revenue-generating grid services.
When evaluating battery storage solutions, it’s important to consider factors like energy and resiliency needs, peak usage times, available space, and the existing solar setup.
Load Shifting vs. Peak Shaving
To effectively manage energy consumption, it’s essential to understand the differences between peak shaving and load shifting. Both strategies aim to reduce energy costs, but they do so in different ways.
- Load Shifting: Focuses on the timing of energy use to capitalize on different hourly rates (kWh).
- Peak Shaving: Focuses on the magnitude of demand to avoid expensive “demand charges” triggered by brief spikes in power usage (kW).
Demand Response and Frequency Regulation
In participating markets such as PJM (the region’s grid operator) battery owners can generate revenue by connecting their battery to the grid. Demand response is an event-based dispatch of the battery to either charge or discharge depending on what the grid is signaling for. These events can last a few minutes up to a few hours. When the grid is forecasting a capacity constraint to meet a future peak, the battery will discharge to power the site, lowering the utility load and freeing up the grid demand. The opposite is true if the grid forecasts excess capacity, the battery will charge to pull power from the grid. This grid/market participation generates revenue for the battery owner.
Frequency regulation is like demand response but operates quicker and more frequently, often sub-second signals, and ideal operating profile for a battery. A battery that is tied to the grid and participating in frequency regulation charges and discharges in very short windows helping the grid stabilize frequency oscillations. Think of frequency regulation as cruise control in your car. You set cruise control to 60mph and the vehicle automatically adjusts acceleration and braking to stabilize at 60mph. The grid operates at 60Hz, a battery in frequency regulation mode will charge and discharge to help the grid stabilize at 60mph. Like demand response, participation in frequency regulation is a revenue generator for the customer as you are offering support to the grid and utility.
There are incentive programs for real-time load reduction. Deploying advanced software solutions (interacting with the grid) can maximize the economic value of BESS. Demand response is a scheduled reduction in energy use during peak events. Frequency response is an instantaneous, automated reaction that keeps the grid stable, second by second.
When determining the ROI of BESS, it is important to understand the capabilities and savings that can be incorporated in your project. By storing excess energy, businesses can reduce reliance on the grid, lower energy costs, and ensure a continuous power supply even when the sun isn’t shining.
At Melink Solar, we have experience integrating battery systems of different scales across various industries. A few examples include Kent State University, Cities, LinkedIn, egg farms in Hawaii and fairgrounds in Cape Cod. Contact us if you would like to unlock more operational efficiency for your organization.
