Green Cloud: energy storage boom is coming, but payback is not automatic in 2026

According to Green Cloud, one of the most important developments in 2026 is the increase in energy storage capacities: a business opportunity, but with complex system integration and non-trivial operational dilemmas. CEO László Pokol draws attention to the fact that production, trading and battery charging in a hybrid power plant cannot always be optimally coordinated – especially if the producer also fulfills PPA contractual obligations. In addition, the return is influenced by many other factors, such as capacity booking fees, taxation and the applied operational model.

The second trend, the company highlights, is the “search for balance” of solar power plants: due to market cannibalization and price fluctuations, it is increasingly difficult to show a stable return without storage. The company sees that Hungary remains one of the most volatile European markets, while calculations of revenue potential are often based on ideal scenarios – assuming perfect market foresight. The introduction of 15-minute settlement could theoretically improve storage revenue opportunities, but the actual result depends heavily on the trading strategy and who operates the asset.

In the third block, Green Cloud summarizes the most common misconceptions surrounding the green transition. According to them, the TOP3 misconceptions are: (1) sustainable green energy supply is only the privilege of the “big ones” because it is expensive; (2) green energy is incompatible with security of supply; (3) energy storage can be “smoothly” integrated into the system. The company’s position is that it is not the device itself that is decisive, but the business model, data-driven operation, flexibility and well-structured partnerships that can turn storage into real value creation in the market and in the network.