Yes, they went there. A little-known startup energy storage company called UET just announced a major milestone for its latest flow battery project, and the folks over there couldn't resist the opportunity to take a poke at the much-publicized Tesla battery, too.

The new UET flow battery is part of a major energy storage project supported by the US Energy Department. The goal is to compare and contrast the performance of  flow batteries with lithium-ion batteries — such as the Tesla battery —  when it comes to utility-scale performance and grid integration. So, hold on to your hats, this could get interesting.

Energy Storage & Flow Batteries

For those of you new to the topic, the energy storage market is set to take off like a rocket, running apace with the renewable energy market and the boom in electric vehicle sales.

Since wind and solar energy come and go, energy storage fills a critical gap in terms of availability and reliability. That goes for utility-scale operations and the booming small-scale sector consisting of homes, businesses, and other relatively small users.

So far, lithium-ion (Li-ion) technology has staked a claim to the gold standard for energy storage in terms of performance relative to cost. To gild the lily, Li-ion batteries are easily scalable — hence the Tesla Motors Li-ion battery and coming Gigafactory.

Best known for its application to the already-legendary Tesla electric vehicle, the Tesla battery was recently introduced to the small-scale stationary energy storage market in the form of the Powerwall battery, and the company is also diving into the utility-scale market.