Eneco is planning a 50 MW/200 MWh battery in Belgium that could become one of the country’s largest energy storage projects. The system will be used to help balance Belgian Elia's electricity grid as more renewables come online.

Eneco said last week that it has obtained permits, ordered the battery, and initiated preparatory study works to make the project operational by the end of 2024. The four-hour battery power plant in Ville-sur-Haine, Wallonia, will be comprised of 53 Tesla Megapacks and could become one of the largest battery projects by capacity in Belgium. However, French energy company Engie recently sought permits to deploy three battery plants with a cumulative power of 380 MW/1.52 GWh, which earlier would outshine Eneco's plant, if delivered.

The Dutch utility has already deployed 128 onshore wind turbines, as part of Belgium's two largest offshore wind farms and nearly 400,000 solar panels in the country, and is now looking to further strengthen its green energy credentials.

“We are strengthening our renewable energy activities in order to contribute to reducing CO2 emissions. In this regard, energy storage is very important to absorb the fluctuations of renewable energy. This project is an important step for us towards a CO2-neutral energy system in 2035,” said Tine Deheegher, manager of renewable energy solutions at Eneco.

Eneco, which is controlled by Japan’s Mitsubishi, has used the project announcement to urge the Dutch government to encourage energy storage deployment on its home turf.

“With this project, Eneco is taking a new step towards a fully sustainable energy system in Belgium and fulfilling the One Planet Plan with the ambition of being fully climate neutral by 2035,” the utility said, adding that the Netherlands needs 10 GW of battery storage by 2030, but presently has only 300 MW installed. “We call on the Dutch government to learn from policies in Belgium and Germany so that the Netherlands can actually achieve a climate-neutral electricity supply by 2035.”