Latent heat and cold storage: What to track

Tariffs for cold storage, survival for hot-metal startups

What this tab covers The attributes worth tracking regularly, with the latest value, the direction of travel and why each matters.

For cold storage track tariffs and peak pricing; for hot PCMs track whether any developer delivers bankable field data.

Category	Attribute	Latest	Trend	Why it matters
Techno-economic	LCOS trajectory (payback as proxy)	No LCOS found; payback about 3.9 years (commercial vendor example), 2-4 years projected (residential)²⁴	→ stable	Payback depends on demand charges and time-of-use spreads.
Technical	Capacity fade and state of health	Ice: negligible; salt hydrates supercool by over 5 C and corrode⁵	→ stable	Material stability decides PCM life.
Supply chain	Critical mineral cost and geopolitical concentration	None needed; salt hydrates USD 0.09-2.53 per kg⁵	→ stable	Low exposure to mineral markets.
Market	Ancillary service and peak-tariff saturation	Over 1 GW of peak reduction across over 4,000 sites (company claim)²	↗ improving	Value falls if peaks flatten or tariffs change.
Regulatory	Safety and environmental compliance	Paraffins flammable, salt hydrates corrosive; no battery-specific code applies⁶	→ stable	Building fire codes govern PCMs indoors.
Impact	Lifecycle carbon payback period	No published figure found²	→ stable	Needed to confirm net benefit of extra chiller energy.
Market	Installed cooling storage	over 13.9 GWh in about 160 projects (IRENA)¹	↗ improving	Indicates market depth for cold storage.
Risk	High-temperature PCM developer survival	Azelio (aluminium alloy) bankrupt July 2023; Dearman (liquid nitrogen) in administration 2019-20; 1414 Degrees at demonstration stage⁸⁹¹³	↕ volatile	Technology and financing risk remain high.