In short and to get straight to the point, we don't have a carbon free lifestyle and means of sustainable development. It takes energy to make e-harvesting and storage for materials as well as transportation. The payback time ranges from weeks to years, and sometimes, more energy is needed to make an infrastructure rather than harness such. 

There are several problems that should be laid out: 

Problem 1: Intermittency of low carbon fuels > day and night shift demand for consumption (e.g. solar)

Problem 2: We can store energy but the storage (plus distribution) loses a lot of potentcial

Problem 3: Storage space (land cover) and the movement of heavy materials

Problem 4: Some applications require high energy density

Currently, the most viable option is to store energy in the form of carbon rather than petals, given that carbon is present in most commodity goods. Enabling more sustainable transitions to low carbon energy would be extremely efficient and beneficial to the overall scheme of things. 

Natural gas can be the way to go for now. In order to act as a bridge fuel between conventional fuels and renewable storage technologies in the short term, we must consider this. Natural gas is clean compared to other substances, e.g. coal oil, etc. plus there is less carbon dioxide per unit of energy. In addition, it is energy dense. Natural gas is deep beneath the surface, trapped in shale rock and is very abundant. This amount can accumulate up to 90 years worth of energy and thus acts as an economic stimulus. 

Note should be taken, however, that this is not a viable solution in the long run due to the chemicals that it contaminates as well. Greenhouse gas emissions are unavoidable but in order to achieve a balance and aid the transition into renewable energies without too much of a halt in the energy outflux, this should be managed. This is merely short term systems thinking and rather than replacing renewable energy, aids into the long term mode for it.