Fusion project opens early market engagement on non-battery energy storage
A UK fusion prototype is seeking expert input on a central non-battery energy storage system, highlighting how complex pulsed power will test current technologies.
A UK fusion prototype is seeking expert input on a central non-battery energy storage system, highlighting how complex pulsed power will test current technologies.
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United Kingdom Industrial Fusion Solutions has begun a search for specialist advice on how to store the electrical output of its prototype STEP plant. Through a prior information notice titled Non-Battery Energy Storage Systems, published on 27th January 2026, the organisation is seeking expert input on a central energy storage system capable of handling the STEP project's unusual pulsed power profile without relying on conventional batteries.
The call for input focuses on the STEP project, where power is generated in pulses rather than as a steady output. The proposed central energy storage system must help ensure the plant remains within its operating parameters during this unique mode of operation. United Kingdom Industrial Fusion Solutions is clear that it wants experts who can close knowledge gaps around non-battery options and support the selection of an appropriate solution.
The prior information notice does not seek to buy hardware. Instead, it invites specialists to share insights that will shape decisions about what kind of central energy storage system the project should pursue. That emphasis on analysis over equipment indicates that the organisation is still weighing up its options and needs a clearer view of what non-battery technologies can offer for this kind of plant.
By framing the work in these terms, the notice positions the central energy store as a critical component of the overall STEP architecture rather than a bolt-on. The store will have to absorb and release power in step with the plant's pulses, and do so in a way that dovetails with the rest of the prototype's systems.
Most recent public sector energy storage procurements, in the UK and abroad, have centred on batteries. That is clear from a string of tenders ranging from small community projects to large utility-scale facilities, all built around battery energy storage systems.
For example, on 7th October 2025 PALLADIUM INTERNATIONAL LIMITED launched Support for Clean Energy Solutions, seeking expert technical support to deploy battery energy storage systems across five Indian states. That contract combines feasibility studies, site identification, financial modelling and capacity building with local electricity distribution companies, all with a view to improving grid flexibility and integrating more renewable energy.
Closer to home, West Sussex County Council signalled in October 2025 that it was revising its approach to a domestic solar and storage programme. Its prior information notice for a Solar PV Group Purchasing Scheme covers rooftop solar panels and battery storage for residents and small businesses in Sussex, with an emphasis on clearer marketing and financial transparency before the council goes back to market.
At the other end of the scale, utilities are commissioning large, dedicated storage plants. On 21st August 2025 PGE Inwest 22 Sp. z o.o. published a contract notice for the Electric Energy Storage Facility Construction project in Gryfino, covering design, permitting, installation, testing and training for a complete storage facility. In December 2025 EDF power solutions went further with its EPC for Variscourt BESS consultation, seeking engineering, procurement, construction and long-term operation for a battery system of around 95 MWh and 47.5 MW.
Other buyers are investing in battery research and safety. On 26th September 2025 the Moroccan Agency for Sustainable Energy, MASEN, issued a prior information notice, Morocco Energy Storage Consulting, to find a firm that can help establish a battery energy storage systems test platform at the Noor Ouarzazate Solar Complex. A month earlier, on 20th August 2025, SPEEH HIDROELECTRICA SA launched Battery Storage Facility Implementation at CHE Porțile de Fier II, covering design, installation, testing and integration of battery accumulators while maintaining compliance with quality and safety regulations.
Against that backdrop, United Kingdom Industrial Fusion Solutions is taking a different path. Its STEP project notice is framed explicitly around non-battery solutions, and around the specific challenge of a pulsed power profile inside a single complex site rather than the more familiar task of smoothing variable renewable generation or maximising rooftop self-consumption.
The central energy storage work is only one strand of the technical procurement around the STEP programme. On 18th September 2025 UK Industrial Solutions Ltd issued a prior information notice titled Low-Activation Tungsten Carbide Procurement, seeking organisations to supply small quantities of low-activation tungsten carbide for in-vessel applications. Those materials are to be tested and characterised to determine whether they are suitable for use inside the plant.
Then on 9th December 2025 UK Industrial Fusion Solutions Ltd followed up with a notice on Power Cycle and Cooling Support. That market engagement seeks information to refine specifications for the design and technology development of systems handling thermal power transfer, working fluid generation and waste heat management for the STEP prototype plant.
Taken together, these notices sketch out the outlines of a highly integrated system: advanced materials inside the vessel, sophisticated power cycle and cooling arrangements, and now a central store that must interact with the plant's pulsed electrical output. Rather than specifying fixed technologies upfront, the programme is using early engagement to identify what is technically and commercially feasible.
There are echoes of this approach elsewhere in the power sector. On 12th December 2025, the National Energy System Operator issued a prior information notice for a Technical Consultancy Engagement, explicitly seeking expressions of interest and feedback to shape the scope and strategy of a forthcoming procurement for consultancy services. Similarly, on 11th September 2025 Slovenské elektrárne launched Market Consultation for Control Software, exploring control systems to support hybrid operation of a motor generator with battery storage and to optimise charging strategies for economic synergies.
Not every advanced energy project is about batteries. On 8th January 2026 Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V. (DLR) published a contract notice for Pipeline Construction for Store2REPower, aiming to expand its TESIS facility so that it can conduct liquid salt heater tests. The contract covers prefabrication, delivery, assembly and insulation of new liquid salt piping, alongside services to install equipment and adapt the wider system.
Infrastructure for liquid salt systems of this kind sits in the same family of complex, non-battery technologies that public bodies are beginning to explore alongside more established battery projects. In that context, the STEP programme's search for a central non-battery store underlines how emerging energy assets are driving demand for fresh expertise in power handling, thermal management and systems integration.
The non-battery storage notice for STEP is, at this stage, about gathering insight rather than running a competition for equipment. It signals that United Kingdom Industrial Fusion Solutions intends to draw on external expertise before committing to a particular central storage technology for its pulsed plant.
For consultants and technology developers, it offers an early window into the questions a fusion project will ask of its supporting infrastructure: how to keep the plant within its operating parameters, how to synchronise storage with a pulsed power cycle, and how to do so without defaulting to familiar battery systems. As more public bodies move from conventional generation to more complex assets, from fusion projects to liquid salt facilities, the way this project closes its knowledge gaps on non-battery storage will be one development to watch.
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