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Abandoned mines could find new use as gravity batteries | The scientists behind a new study estimate that, worldwide, there are likely millions of disused mines suitable for energy storage
Just because a mine has been exhausted of its ore, that doesn't necessarily mean it has no value. A 2023 study suggests that the shafts of such abandoned mines could serve as energy-storing gravity batteries.
It would likewise utilize elevators, but these ones would be in existing disused mine shafts, and they'd be raising and lowering containers full of sand. The scientists estimate that UGES could have a global energy storage potential of 7 to 70 TWh (terawatt hours), with most of the plants being located in countries where there are already a lot of abandoned mines, such as China, India, Russia and the US. "Mines already have the basic infrastructure and are connected to the power grid, which significantly reduces the cost and facilitates the implementation of UGES plants."
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