Decarbonizing industrial heat is one of the major challenges of the energy transition. Electrification of industrial heat processes, particularly when coupled with renewable electricity and thermal energy storage, has emerged as a promising pathway to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Among TES technologies, sensible thermal energy storage systems based on molten salts or solid media offer high technological maturity and scalability for medium- and high-temperature industrial applications. In electrified thermal storage systems (ETES), high-temperature electric heaters constitute the key interface between the electrical and thermal domains, converting electricity into thermal energy that can subsequently be stored and supplied to industrial processes. However, despite the increasing deployment of power-to-heat systems integrated with TES, the coupled thermal, hydraulic, and dynamic behaviour of electric heaters remains insufficiently understood.This paper presents a critical review of electrified sensible TES systems for industrial heat applications, with particular focus on the role of high-temperature electric heaters within P2H architectures. The current state of the art is analysed, and the main technological challenges are identified, including heat transfer limitations, thermo-mechanical stresses, material degradation, dynamic operation, and integration with electricity markets. The analysis highlights that limited component-level understanding of electric heaters constitutes a major barrier for the accurate design, modelling, flexibility assessment, and large-scale deployment of ETES systems.
