Executive Summary
- Gravity energy storage systems use mechanical lifting and dropping heavy concrete blocks to generate electricity, which is another alternative to the grid.
- The main benefits of this storage solution are the long-duration power, which handles high-volatility loads and requires lower cooling and fire protection when compared to traditional chemical batteries.
- After innovation upon innovation, new technology, and AI, sometimes it just takes the simplest mechanical solutions to solve the most advanced digital problems we have today.
Imagine charging your phone by cranking a 30-tonne concrete block up to the top of a tower using excess solar power, and when your phone needs charging, you release the block, so as the gravity pulls it down, a cable turns a turbine and generates electricity. Not as convenient for phone charging, sure, but this is what Gravity Energy Storage Systems (GESS) does.
GESS uses GCSE physics (mass x height) to turn into a battery that never degrades or catches fire and doesn’t need rare Earth metals; it uses the lifting and lowering of heavy masses to store and release potential energy. Developers have been using this type of energy storage because it provides long-duration power, handles high-volatility loads and requires lower cooling and fire protection when compared to traditional chemical batteries.
This isn’t an industry-specific method; other sectors use gravity batteries. However, the standard gravity batteries rely on huge physical cranes or underground shafts and are too vast for standard commercial server buildings, so the industry uses specialised, space-efficient deployments or hybrid setups.
How GESS actually works and why data centres are buying into it
Mechanical towers or converted industrial shafts lift massive blocks of recycled materials using clean energy such as cheap wind or solar power. So, when the grid is fluctuating, the blocks are dropped and that converts potential energy into electricity. Modern systems tend to use compressed coal ash and recycled industrial waste to utilise this storage system. Effectively, this turns environmental pollution into energy storage.
Data centres are buying into this because they provide between 4 and 12+ hours of continuous power with no fire risk, which makes them a great fit for urban and industrial hyperscale facilities that can’t risk having lithium because of the fire risk.
The main benefits
- Zero degradation – gravity systems have no chemical components, so they can ensure constant storage capacity over a 35- to 50-year lifespan.
- Safety is far superior – Using mechanical lifting and lowering removes fire risks and the thermal runway.
- High efficiency – They’re highly competitive with other large-scale storage solutions because they have an efficiency of over 80%.
- Cost efficiency – the levelised cost of storage favours GESS over chemical energy storage because of its high efficiency, safety and immense lifespans.
Returning to mechanical power
After innovation upon innovation, new technology, and AI, sometimes it just takes the simplest mechanical solutions to solve the most advanced digital problems we have today. China is dominating the GESS market right now to green its digital infrastructure alongside state backing as these projects have officially been classified as “Pilot Demo Projects for New Forms of Energy Storage”, which fast-tracks approvals and unlocks funding that Western developers can’t access. “Bankable” mass adoption of GESS in Western markets has probably stalled at the end of the 2020s, seeing as developers are still waiting for longitudinal data. It is amusing to think that in the race to power AI and keep up with its demands, the cleanest “battery” could just be a big heavy block of recycled materials and gravity.
