A 50MW/100MWh battery energy storage system, the largest in continental Europe, has been inaugurated in Belgium by developer Corsica Sole. Contact online >>
A 50MW/100MWh battery energy storage system, the largest in continental Europe, has been inaugurated in Belgium by developer Corsica Sole.
The system in the French-speaking region of Wallonia came online last week (1 December), and is the first of three 100MWh projects in Belgium that have been slated to come online before the end of the year (more details further down).
The project’s development was led by Corsica Sole, while developers Yuso and InnoVent were project partners. EV and energy storage firm Tesla provided its MegaPack utility-scale battery storage product for the system (pictured), which is in the district of Deux-Acren.
The system will help to ensure the stability of frequency in the European electricity network. The main way battery systems do this is through participating in Frequency Control Reserve (FCR), which will be gradually replaced by a pan-European service called automatic frequency restoration reserve (aFRR).
As well as helping to regulate the frequency of the grid, the system will mitigate the intermittency of renewable energy sources by providing load shifting services.
Developer Yuso, one of the project partners in the Wallonia project, is also involved in the development of another 100MWh system in Belgium, providing optimisation services under a 10-year deal. That four-hour system (25MW power) is set to come online before the end of the year, while another 25MW/100MWh system from commodities trading company Trafigura in the municipality of Balen was also slated to come online in 2022.
Corsica Sole said the project totalled €33 million (US$34.7 million) of investment.
“This project is an important step for the development of electricity storage solutions in Europe,” said Michael Coudyser, managing director of Corsica Sole.
“We financed this project with our shareholder Mirova Energy Transition 5 without having recourse to any public subsidy. By demonstrating that the large-scale deployment of batteries is economically viable, we provide proof that we can build a world based on renewable energy coupled with energy storage.”
The Paris-headquartered firm has previously completed storage systems on the Mediterranean island of Corsica, an overseas territory of France, as previously reported by Energy-Storage.news. Asset manager Mirova acquired a stake in the firm in April 2021.
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Belgium''s energy minister visited the site of a large-scale lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery storage project, a few days after attending the inauguration of a vanadium flow battery system.
Government minister Tinne Van Straeten visited TotalEnergies'' refinery and petrochemicals platform complex in Antwerp, where the French multinational has developed its first battery energy storage system (BESS) in Belgium.
The 25MW/75MWh Li-ion project is due for completion by the end of this year, with 40 containerised BESS solutions provided by battery manufacturer and storage system integrator Saft, owned by TotalEnergies.
It is the energy company''s largest battery project in Europe to date, and TotalEnergies used the occasion of the minister''s visit to announce a second project of equal sizing and capacity in the country, roughly a year after the Antwerp refinery project was announced.
Also being deployed at one of TotalEnergies'' petrochemicals refineries, this time in Fuloy, Wallonia province, the project will again have a power rating of 25MW to 75MW capacity, for a 3-hour duration. As with the Antwerp project, Saft''s Intensium Max High-Energy BESS solution will be used.
TotalEnergies aims to develop 5GW of its own battery storage projects globally by 2030. It has already delivered four projects in France which were awarded 129MW of ancillary services contracts from the grid operator RTE.
As with the two new projects in Belgium, TotalEnergie''s French BESS sites are all located at various refineries and platforms the company owns and operates, benefiting from available land and perhaps more importantly, grid connections.
In January, TotalEnergies acquired German BESS developer Kyon Energy, for €90 million (US$98 million)upfront, plus further payments linked to development targets, while a few months back in October, the French company switched on a 255MWh Saft BESS at a solar PV plant in Texas, US.
Within Belgium, TotalEnergies has a combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power plant, a pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) plant and an offshore wind farm, while it is also developing further wind plants and solar PV projects.
Belgium is becoming a market that represents good opportunities for battery storage assets, due to its congested grid with a rising share of renewable energy. In an Energy-Storage.news webinar to be hosted tomorrow (4 April) with consultancy Clean Horizon, Bart Pyke of Belgian route-to-market optimiser Yuso will discuss the business case and fundamental drivers for storage in the country''s energy markets.
Last week (27 March), minister Van Straeten was at the inauguration of a 0.8MWh vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) system co-located with a 0.6MW solar PV array at an industrial site in the East Flanders city of Aalst.
Provided by Anglo-American flow battery tech company Invinity Energy Systems in partnership with the Belgian subsidiary of another French multinational, ENGIE, and energy and technical services firm EQUANS, the flow battery is installed at the headquarters of Jan De Nul, a civil engineering firm.
ENGIE''s energy management system (EMS) will control the batteries as they store energy generated from the onsite solar PV for use in the evenings. Invinity said it, ENGIE and EQUANS hope to use the project to better understand how flow battery technology could be used at such sites as an alternative to Li-ion.
Currently, Belgium''s two biggest battery storage systems are a 50MW/100MWh system in Wallonia from French developer Corsica Sole, and a 25MW/100MWh system in Ruien by a Nippon Koei-Aquila Clean Energy joint venture.
Minister Van Straeten also attended the inauguration of the Ruien project, which is optimised by Yuso.
In November last year, Belgium''s grid operator Elia awarded 15-year Capacity Remuneration Mechanism (CRM) contracts to 357MW of new-build BESS projects. Those capacity market contracts are thought to represent a relatively small portion of the revenue stack available to BESS assets in the country, but offer long-term revenue certainty, while other applications include the lucrative frequency control reserve (FCR) and secondary reserve ancillary services products.
In March, Equans officially signed the contract for the construction of this BESS facility in Vilvoorde, commissioned by ENGIE. This project reaffirms Equans'' position as a leader in Belgium''s energy transition, demonstrating its commitment to sustainable and innovative solutions.
Scheduled to commence in June 2024, the project aims for completion by early 2026. With a capacity of 2 x 100 MW and an energy storage of 800 MWh, the park comprises 320 battery containers and 80 inverters. Located at the site of the former gas power plant in Vilvoorde, this project aligns with the ambition to transform the site into a hub for renewable energy.
Equans'' scope of work encompasses all Balance of Plant (BOP) activities, excluding the batteries and inverters. This includes aspects such as civil engineering, high-voltage grid connection, installation and connection of substations, management of medium-voltage cells, low-voltage cabinets, auxiliary transformers, as well as AC, DC, and signal cabling, among others. Our partner, Galère, is responsible for the construction of civil structures for this project.
At Equans, our mission is to guide companies through their energy, digital and industrial transitions. The rise of renewable energy sources such as solar panels and other forms of intermittent production underscores the growing importance of energy storage. Recognising this as a fundamental pillar of the energy transition and to realise necessary solutions, we launched Equans Solar & Storage globally last year. This specialised brand brings together over 1500 experts committed to forging sustainable partnerships with our clients, facilitating a greener future together.
We are engaged across the entire value chain, from design and engineering to construction, delivery, and maintenance. By amalgamating our expertise in solar energy and energy storage with our proven experience in energy and transportation networks, we contribute to the stability and sustainability of the energy infrastructure.
SPIE is the independent European leader in multi-technical services in the areas of energy and communications. Our 50,000 employees are committed to achieving the energy transition and responsible digital transformation alongside our customers.
In addition to its economic performance, SPIE aims to contribute to a more sustainable, responsible and inclusive world.
Do you want to use your skills to contribute to projects that help society, the economy and the planet? Welcome to SPIE, a key player in the energy transition and digital transformation.
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