Battery storage for more balance in the grid

VERBUND, Austria’s leading energy company, is positioning itself as a strong partner for grid operators, industry and electromobility with the use of large battery stores. The battery store in Eisenach, in western Thuringia, was put into operation at the beginning of April. As developer and contractor, ECO STOR GmbH realised the project for VERBUND.

The increasing expansion of wind and solar power is causing big fluctuations in the power grid. Excess energy is followed by periods of shortfalls. The battery store springs into action when the grid is under particularly heavy load. For example, on dull winter’s days or in phases of particularly high energy consumption. When this happens, all flexible providers receive a remuneration from the grid operator because they make an important contribution to stability in the grid. In addition, the stored energy is used to optimise revenue on the flexibility market.

The battery store consists of three battery stations – with a total output of 10 MW – and offers grid-related services to secure the distribution grid and integrate renewable energies. In this way, the battery store supports the local distribution grid by saving costs for the use of upstream grid or transformer levels by feeding in power and work. In addition, excess energy is used on the balancing energy market or on the intraday market. The feed-in to the distribution grid is remunerated by the distribution grid operators as “avoided grid charges” (pursuant to Sec. 18 (1) (1) StromNEV).

Expertise for the energy transition

“Battery stores play a key role in the integration of new renewables into the energy system. We link our know-how in the areas of storage and energy market with the expertise for flexibility marketing, thus initiating a trend reversal and in doing so making an important contribution to the success of the energy transition,” emphasises Martin Wagner, managing director of VERBUND Energy4Business GmbH. Two other battery store projects in Bavaria are also being constructed by ECO STOR and will commence operation by the end of the year.

Investment in sustainability and independence

Implementation partner in the role of developer and general contractor is the German-Norwegian company ECO STOR. The ECO STOR team organised everything from development and planning to procurement and installation. “We deliver turnkey battery store projects as investment opportunities for energy suppliers and renewable energy funds because we believe in private investments as a decisive factor for the creation of a sustainable and independent energy supply,” says Georg Gallmetzer, managing director of ECO STOR GmbH.

For VERBUND, the expansion of the portfolio and further development of storage operator using hydropower to storage operator using battery store is a logical step. Precisely because of the in-depth expertise in storage management tried and test over many years, combine with the trade of flexibilities on the energy markets, battery stores offer a sensible expansion of the value chain for VERBUND. Here, VERBUND assumes the role of an investor and subsequently also that of the operator of the battery store. VERBUND uses the marketing experience of battery flexibilities not only for its own battery stores, but also offers this expertise to third parties.

Grid, industry and mobility benefit

At the start of the year, VERBUND had already put the first large storage location at Breitenworbis in Thuringia’s Eichsfeld district into operation. With 20 MW, the battery stores in Breitenworbis and Eisenach make a contribution to stabilising the distribution grid of TEN Thüringer Energienetze GmbH & Co. KG.

75 years of energy future

VERBUND, founded in 1947, is decisively advancing the shift in the classic business model from electricity generator to energy partner. Innovation, research and development play the main pace-setting role. With innovative overall concepts for the complex challenges of the energy transition, VERBUND is a trendsetter on the market and marking the next milestone on the way to the energy future. VERBUND is a strong energy partner for the energy transition From the delivery of green electricity and CO2 certificates to business solutions for photovoltaics, battery stores and charging infrastructure for electromobility, VERBUND offers everything under one roof.