Inside the Rise of Storage with Tom Thunell of Tyba

Nov 27, 2025

Tom Thunell, co-founder and CEO of Tyba, shares insights from the forefront of the battery storage market. He discusses the implications of ERCOT's upcoming real-time co-optimization and its impact on storage revenues. The conversation dives into how storage is becoming the primary driver of investment in the US, particularly post-IRA. Tom also highlights the rise of large behind-the-meter deployments and the need for IPPs to adapt their strategies to manage these evolving portfolios effectively. Don't miss his tips on navigating the complexities of the storage landscape!

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INSIGHT

Storage Requires End‑to‑End Tools

Tyba began with long-term simulation tools for development and later added day-to-day asset optimization as customers reached operations.
Tom says this evolution reflects storage's distinct lifecycle from renewables underwriting to active trading.

INSIGHT

ERCOT's Real‑Time Co‑Optimization Gamechanger

ERCOT will roll out real-time co-optimization of energy and ancillary services every five minutes, favoring flexible resources.
Tom believes this will create trading opportunities and may inspire other ISOs to value flexibility more highly.

INSIGHT

Lower Prices But New Trading Paths For Storage

Real-time co-optimization may lower average energy prices but unlocks novel day-ahead ancillary services trading and minute-by-minute arbitrage for batteries.
Tom argues storage will be least impacted and best positioned to exploit dynamic, flexible markets.

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Welcome back to The Pexapark Podcast! In the first part of the episode, we look at how policy and markets are converging around storage and flexibility. Germany is preparing an industrial power price subsidy from 2026, offering 50 €/MWh for part of energy-intensive companies’ load over three years, while France’s EDF has widened access to its long-term nuclear-based contracts to thousands more companies beyond just heavy industry. Romania is launching a demand-side flexibility market, allowing large users to offer demand reductions in the day-ahead market and share revenues with consumers – part of a broader shift across Europe and the US toward managing load as well as supply.

In Italy, the post-MOXIE battery storage market is moving from tolling agreements toward day-ahead spread swaps as investors increasingly bet on widening spreads and more negative prices. Meanwhile in ERCOT, BESS revenues have dipped even as long-term arbitrage values reach record highs and toll offers stay flat, driving renewed interest in storage dealmaking.

In the second part, Luca Pedretti speaks with Tom Thunell, co-founder of Tyba, about how the US battery storage market is evolving and what this shift means for IPPs transitioning from traditional renewables into storage-heavy portfolios. Enjoy a discussion on themes including:

ERCOT’s upcoming real-time co-optimization shift and how it reshapes storage revenues and trading strategies
Why storage is increasingly becoming the lead investment driver in hybrid projects
The rise of large behind-the-meter and data-center-linked storage deployments
Key differences in value stacks and operations between markets like CAISO and ERCOT
Why many ISOs still undervalue storage in capacity accreditation – and how early movers offer lessons
How IPPs must shift from development-finance models to more trading- and operations-centric approaches
Portfolio strategies for new storage investors, from leveraging existing interconnections to diversifying markets and offtake structures

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