“With on-site storage solutions, air-conditioning can help keep people cool in a world that is getting warmer, while reducing harmful impact on the environment,” writes Yaron Ben Nun.

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There was not supposed to be air-conditioning in the athletes’ quarters at this summer’s Olympics in Paris. But despite proclaiming them “the greenest games in Olympic history,” Olympic and French officials eventually buckled under pressure, as Team USA, along with numerous others including teams from Britain, Germany, Italy, Japan, and Canada, brought their own AC units along to fight the summer heat. Ultimately, about 2,500 AC units cooled the residences where athletes stayed, as teams apparently didn’t trust Paris’ green solution, a geothermal cooling system that was supposed to lower indoor temperatures by about 10F (5.6C). 

The Olympic air conditioning “debacle,” as some pundits termed it, contains numerous lessons – but the most important is that most humans will not give up being comfortable in order to promote sustainability. In fact, as the world is heating up, demand for energy to power air conditioning is expected to double by 2050, contributing significantly to carbon emissions and fueling the cycle of climate change.  

Much of that demand will be in factories, office buildings, hotels, academic institutions, and other commercial and industrial-scale facilities that cater to large numbers of people. Already in the US, commercial buildings are responsible for 75% of electricity use – and nearly half of that is used for HVAC. In addition to increasing carbon emissions, AC use taxes strained electric grids and results in high power bills in many areas. Key to addressing these challenges from the property consumption side are on-site energy storage solutions. These solutions will still provide people with the cooling power they crave, but in a much greener, and more affordable manner.

Even as more renewable energy comes online, electric grids across the country are under increased strain to keep up with the growing power demand for AC systems. This is mainly due to spiking demand for electricity in later afternoon to evening hours when solar energy – the most common renewable source in many states like California – is less available. 

That means that at these peak times, grids rely heavily on energy made from fossil fuels; this energy is both more carbon-intensive and more expensive. This has led to more frequent brown-outs and black-outs, as well as efforts to incentivize customers, including commercial buildings, to reduce power use during these peak demand hours, which are rapidly growing more expensive.

For example, peak prices in California are expected to rise by 50% by 2044, while non-peak rates could fall by 50%. But commercial properties like hotels and office buildings cannot simply shut off their air-conditioning; and factories cannot just pause their production lines. While many buildings implement energy efficiency measures, at least to some extent, it’s usually not sufficient –  and as a consequence they face reciprocal costs that are much higher than necessary. Demonstrating this, data from the US Energy Information Administration shows that power costs for commercial buildings have risen by over 20% between mid-2019 and mid-2024.

An effective and practical way to take advantage of the hours with lower costs for power, and when that power comes from renewable sources is to install energy storage systems. Popular options to date include battery and thermal energy storage systems, which are based on heating or cooling a substance like water. Energy storage systems can be charged when the power from the grid is cheaper and greener, then discharge stored energy to power air conditioning and other needs during the peak hours when electricity from the grid is more expensive and made from polluting fossil fuels. 

For commercial buildings especially, thermal solutions can be a real game-changer; as lithium-ion batteries pose fire safety and capacity concerns. Thermal solutions are growing smaller in size, and more efficient, and are increasingly powered by smart software, autonomously charging and discharging throughout the day according to both the ever-changing cost and carbon intensity of the power from the grid. That time-shift of electricity-use enabled by these systems significantly reduces electricity costs – and reduces the strain on the grid, as well as overall carbon emissions.

The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act provides subsidies for up to 30% of up-front installation costs for commercial, academic, and other users who install such systems. In addition, the energy market allows energy storage system owners to earn compensation by helping the grid reduce peak loads, enhancing the return on investment, along with taking advantage of local incentives. To save even more money, buildings can utilize programs like energy storage as a service, in which an external vendor installs and maintains storage systems.

In addition to saving on energy bills, installing on-site storage systems allows buildings to take steps toward zero-emissions goals and carbon taxes that some jurisdictions plan to impose in the coming years.

As the recent Olympics showed, people cannot live without air conditioning. But we don’t need to; with on-site storage solutions, air-conditioning can help keep people cool in a world that is getting warmer, while reducing harmful impact on the environment.

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