Investments in long duration energy storage have increased by nearly a factor of 13 since 2018.

The data comes from a recent report by the Long Duration Energy Storage (LDES) Council and year-end numbers from PitchBook, a financial research firm and data provider.

Long duration energy storage is classified as technologies that can store energy for days and even weeks at a time. This type contrasts with the most well-known type of storage: lithium-ion batteries.

As Dowling wrote above, different types of storage technologies serve different purposes. LDES can compensate for seasons that are less windy than normal (as Europe has just experienced), while lithium-ion batteries can work best with cars and brief stints on a power grid.

The LDES Council, which launched at the United Nations Climate Change Conference last November, includes roughly two dozen members ranging from technology startups to major corporations, including BP, Siemens Energy and Rio Tinto.

This year is already serving up more big deals. Goldman Sachs just invested $250 million from its private equity division into Hydrostor, according to Canary Media. The outlet says this makes it “one of the largest corporate investments ever made” in an LDES company.

Note: Breakthrough Energy is a member of the LDES Council.