This requirement is probably the most demanding challengetowards the realization of a sustainable energy supply basedon renewable energy sources such as photovoltaic and windpower, because their electricity output varies strongly with time,is often not reliably predictable and at most times differs greatlyfrom the actual electricity demand. In particular, the lack ofavailable renewable energy during prolonged calm and cloudyperiods poses a major challenge. To provide enough electricityon such days one can either resort to a large fleet of conventionalpower plants in standby mode, ready to take over when therenewable energy sources cannot satisfy the demand, or buildhuge facilities (such as pumped storage or batteries) for longduration electricity storage. Both of these approaches requirecostly hardware to be built and maintained on a scale similar tothe existing fleet of conventional power plants in the UK.