Brazil’s energy storage market is entering a new phase of development, moving from pilot projects toward commercial-scale deployments, according to UCB Power.
Vinicius Berná, executive director of Commercial and New Business at UCB Power, said 2025 marked a turning point for the Brazilian storage sector, while 2026 is becoming a year of market consolidation.
“2025 represented the commercial inflection point of the Brazilian market, while 2026 is the year of its institutionalization,” Berná said. “Storage is moving from a market predominantly formed by pilot projects to one with replicable portfolios, larger projects, new business models and a concrete outlook for utility-scale contracting through the first dedicated storage auctions.”
The executive said recent market data confirms the acceleration. Based on figures from consultancy Greener, manufacturers and solution providers received orders equivalent to 730 MWh in 2025, a volume similar to the total accumulated during the previous five years.
In the first quarter of 2026, another 504 MWh of new orders were recorded, bringing the total volume of battery systems sold or contracted in Brazil to around 1.9 GWh. Berná noted, however, that this figure does not represent installed capacity, which Greener estimated at 852 MWh in its latest public survey.
The growth in demand is also reflected in UCB Power’s own production. Berná said the company increased production of stationary lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries from around 47,900 units in 2024 to 53,000 units in 2025, representing growth of approximately 10%.
LFP dominant
Berná expects LFP batteries to remain the dominant technology in Brazil’s stationary storage market in the coming years, following global trends.
Although there is no consolidated public data on battery chemistry shares in Brazil, he said LFP accounts for most new projects and represented around 90% of new global battery storage installations in 2025.
“The leadership of LFP is explained by the combination of competitive cost, long cycle life, thermal stability, efficiency, industrial maturity, broad supplier availability and greater bankability. For stationary applications, it currently offers a very favorable balance between safety, performance and total cost of ownership,” Berná said.
The executive said future storage development will depend not only on new battery chemistries but also on improvements across complete systems.
“Smarter energy management systems (EMS), remote monitoring, cybersecurity, fire safety and grid-forming inverters will become increasingly relevant in differentiating complete and reliable storage systems,” he said.
Sodium-ion batteries are emerging as the main alternative chemistry for stationary applications due to greater raw material availability, Berná said, although the technology still needs further progress in industrial scale, supply chains, energy density and competitiveness before challenging LFP.
UCB Power already has experience with sodium-ion batteries through microgrid projects in Brazil’s Amazon region. Berná also highlighted flow batteries and other long-duration storage technologies as promising solutions for specific applications.
Critical infrastructure
UCB Power said it expects Brazil’s storage market to expand across several segments, with utility-scale projects representing the largest opportunity by volume.
Future capacity reserve auctions are expected to create long-term contracts and formally recognize batteries as strategic assets for electricity system security and flexibility.
The company also sees strong potential among commercial, industrial and critical infrastructure customers, including data centers, hospitals, telecommunications networks, industries and large commercial facilities.
“In these customers, storage combines backup, peak demand reduction, load shifting, solar integration and power quality improvements,” Berná said. “The economic benefit does not depend only on tariff arbitrage, but also on avoiding losses caused by interruptions.”
The executive also highlighted isolated systems and microgrids as important opportunities, particularly in regions where battery storage can help replace diesel generation and improve electricity reliability.
Residential storage is expected to continue growing alongside solar PV, although adoption will depend on tariffs, financing availability and consumer demand for energy independence.
Battery costs
Falling battery prices are also supporting market growth.
According to Berná, BloombergNEF data shows that the average global price of stationary storage battery packs reached $70/kWh in 2025, down around 45% from the previous year.
In Brazil, Greener’s benchmark price for a 500 kW/1 MWh system declined from around BRL 1.88 ($0.37)/Wh in 2025 to BRL 1.73/Wh in 2026.
Berná said project costs extend beyond batteries, including inverters, battery management systems (BMS), energy management systems (EMS), cooling, fire protection, civil works, installation and maintenance.
“There is no single winning battery for every application. The choice must consider the usage cycle, required autonomy, available space, maintenance, load criticality and total lifetime cost,” he said.
While lead-acid batteries remain competitive for short-duration backup applications with limited cycling, Berná said LFP is increasingly attractive when total cost of ownership is considered, particularly for intensive-use projects and applications requiring longer autonomy.
For UCB Power, Brazil’s first dedicated storage auction could help establish market standards, attract investment and support the development of local suppliers.
Berná said the proposed auction structure, which separates projects using domestically manufactured batteries from those open to broader competition, could support industrial development while maintaining market competition.
“More than contracting the first projects, we expect the auctions to create a technically disciplined, financially sustainable market capable of developing a lasting industrial chain in the country,” he concluded.
From pv magazine Brazil
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