Andrea Pedretti designed Energy Vault’s Gravity Energy Storage Solution (GESS), which can provide long-duration storage for renewable energy without the need for lithium-ion batteries. The system uses surplus green energy from the grid to lift heavy blocks high into the air, and lowers them to generate electricity when it’s needed. If incorporated into tall buildings, the GESS can cut the carbon footprint of urban infrastructure. The company has already connected the world’s first commercial-scale GESS project to the grid in China, with three more under construction, and is building the first large-scale gravity storage facility in the U.S. In May, Energy Vault announced a partnership with influential architecture firm SOM to design skyscrapers that contain the company’s blocks.

What is the single most important action you think the public, or a specific company or government (other than your own), needs to take in the next year to advance the climate agenda?

It is essential for governments, policymakers, and stakeholders, including clean tech innovators like Energy Vault, to continue to provide customers better technology, reliability, and economic value that will increase adoption of the products and services that drive the energy transition. We need leadership that signals that innovations like energy storage options will be available and ready to step in to solve difficult energy and climate challenges. 

What’s one sustainability effort you personally will try to adopt in the next year, and why?

A personal sustainability goal this next year is to install a home battery system and encourage friends and neighbors to do the same. This goal is both impactful and increasingly accessible for many homeowners. It’s worth considering because it can allow you to store excess energy produced during sunny hours for use at night or during cloudy days, reduce your reliance on the grid, lower your electricity bills and carbon footprint, provide backup power during outages, and play a crucial role in balancing energy supply and demand.

If you could stand up and talk to world leaders at the next U.N. climate conference, what would you say?

I would urge world leaders to fully leverage the potential of energy storage in combating climate change. They should prioritize energy storage by elevating it to a central role in climate strategies and Nationally Determined Contributions; incentivize innovation through policies that encourage the development and deployment of diverse storage technologies; fostering collaboration with innovative partnerships between governments, industries, and research institutions; investing in grid infrastructure capable of integrating large-scale storage; and setting ambitious targets by establishing concrete goals for storage deployment alongside renewable energy targets.