Image credit: TotalEnergies
TotalEnergies has launched a 25MW/75MWh battery energy storage project at its Antwerp refinery in Belgium.
The location on the Antwerp refinery site will provide the land needed for the project, as well as an existing grid connection.
The project will be the energy company’s largest battery installation in Europe and will consist of 40 Intensium Max High Energy lithium-ion battery containers supplied by Saft, the battery subsidiary of TotalEnergies.
The installation, which will be operational by the end of 2024, will help meet the needs of the European and Belgian high-voltage transmission network 24/7 by:
• Smoothing power fluctuations in the national grid on a daily basis, particularly during peak winter periods.
• Guaranteeing grid security by participating actively in the national grid’s reserve services.
• Allowing more renewable electricity to be integrated into the grid.
According to TotalEnergies, this energy storage project will compensate for the intermittency introduced by renewable energies. Batteries are an effective response to the growing need for grid balancing. They can be deployed quickly, have a limited footprint and high reactivity. As a result, they can help meet the new challenges facing power grids today.
“This first storage project in Belgium – our largest in Europe – will help ensure the stability of the Belgian and European grids to allow for greater development of renewable energies,” said Olivier Jouny, senior vice president Integrated Power at TotalEnergies.
In Belgium, TotalEnergies acts as an electricity supplier, with a portfolio of 450,000 BtC sites and around 100,000 BtB sites. To supply them with energy, TotalEnergies relies in particular on the Marchienne-au-Pont CCGT power plant (430MW), the Plate-Taille hydroelectric dam (140MW), and a wind farm located in the Belgian waters of the North Sea (300MW).
