At present, the profitability of industrial and commercial energy storage mainly comes from peak valley arbitrage, which means charging during low load periods and discharging during high load periods, using the time of use electricity pricing rules to earn price differences. Users can save on electricity costs while avoiding the risk of power outages and restrictions.

With the improvement of time of use electricity prices, the difference between peak and valley electricity prices has widened, and the economic efficiency of industrial and commercial energy storage has significantly improved. At present, there are two main business models for the operation of industrial and commercial energy storage in China.

One is for industrial and commercial users to install energy storage devices themselves, which can directly reduce electricity costs, but users need to bear the initial investment cost and annual equipment maintenance cost.

Another approach is for energy service enterprises to assist users in installing energy storage, where energy service enterprises invest in building energy storage assets and are responsible for operation and maintenance. Industrial and commercial users pay electricity costs to energy service enterprises.

At the same time, user side energy storage has achieved multi scenario expansion, resulting in numerous application scenarios such as charging and swapping stations, data centers, 5G base stations, port shore power, and battery swapping heavy-duty trucks.

Industrial and commercial energy storage peak valley arbitrage, as an emerging business model, has injected vitality into the electricity market. This arbitrage behavior can not only balance the supply and demand relationship of the power grid, but also improve the economic benefits of energy storage equipment.

Due to the different price differences between industrial and commercial sectors in different provinces, there is also a significant difference in the economic benefits of industrial and commercial energy storage. At present, domestic industrial and commercial energy storage is mainly concentrated in regions with high peak valley price differences and developed industrial and commercial industries such as Jiangsu, Guangdong, and Zhejiang. The peak valley price difference exceeds 0.74 yuan/kWh, so the profit from the peak valley price difference of industrial and commercial energy storage in these regions is relatively large. The time of use electricity pricing policies in various regions are constantly improving, and the number of provinces that achieve two charging and two discharging is increasing. To encourage industrial and commercial users to change their electricity consumption patterns, multiple regions will dynamically adjust and improve their time of use electricity pricing policies, providing important support for peak valley arbitrage. Currently, most regions have set up two peak periods, which allow for both charging and discharging. The economic benefits of dual charging and discharging increase energy storage utilization, increase arbitrage income, and shorten investment return period, making industrial and commercial energy storage investments more attractive. The current trend of widening the price difference between peak and valley is continuing, and there is broad space for energy storage arbitrage, with the potential for further increase in returns.