July 17, 2025: Lead batteries can outpace the market by securing the right positioning on key markets including behind-the-meter (BTM) applications, according to new analysis from KPMG.

The global professional services firm said lead batteries are also suited to microgrids and grid stabilization — and said Europe will need to manufacture and deploy a range of battery technologies to support increasing reliance on renewable energy by 2035.

KPMG’s findings, included in its ‘Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) 2035 Market Outlook and Opportunities’, published at last month’s global lead conference Pb2025 in Amsterdam, identified all of the current battery technologies available and how they can best be deployed.

With BTM, particularly in EV infrastructure, lead batteries can take their place as genuine market competitors, KPMG said.

The report’s findings echo sentiments made in 2023 by Hammond Group chief Terry Murphy, who told a US Capitol Hill briefing lead batteries were “giants hiding in plain sight” and more than capable of boosting energy security needs.

KPMG’s report said: “By 2035, lead batteries could secure up to 30% of the EV infrastructure market and has the potential to secure more than 30% of yearly new additions in other BTM applications in emerging economies.”
Of those emerging economies, particularly India, lead batteries can be adopted to support the deployment of utility-scale renewable energy against a backdrop of rising temperatures.

KPMG’s ‘upside scenario’ pre-supposed prerequisites across the entire lead industry, including securing R&D investment to achieve long-duration energy storage systems and to achieve extended cycle life, with deep discharge cycles.

The industry should also deploy demonstrator projects to prove lead’s viability to project developers.
Report author Chihab Boucheffa, KPMG’s strategy consultant, said: “Battery energy storage systems are becoming increasingly necessary to address challenges associated with renewables, such as grid destabilization, while also unlocking new value capture opportunities.

“Decision-makers need to ensure they have the right mix of battery technologies available to them to smooth the transition, manage the increased load on the grid, and avoid the kind of disruption we have seen in Spain.”