Southern Europe Outdoor Power Supply BESS

In this paper we will focus on Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), which are usually based on lithium-ion batteries and whose adoption is growing rapidly. Consultancy Wood Mackenzie forecasts that 89GWh of grid-scale BESS capacity will be installed in Europe by 2031 – a 20-fold increase over 2022.

BESS developments stabilise a country's energy infrastructure. For instance, Europe's first commercial BESS development, Schwerin Battery Park, in Germany was able to restore power to a grid in the midst of an unexpected blackout.

The UK, Italy, Germany and Spain are the four largest markets for BESS in Europe. Figure 1. New capacity forecasts for top 10 European grid-scale energy storage markets 2022-2031 (GWh). Source: Wood Mackenzie.

It can also participate in the wholesale market, levelling out peaks in demand via peak shaving and avoiding congestion in the nodes, and therefore, curtailments. The three most important revenue sources for BESS in Europe are wholesale energy market arbitrage, ancillary services and long term capacity provision.

Installed on the site of a renewable energy plant, BESS can store surplus energy during periods of high generation and release it when demand peaks or during periods of low renewable energy production or even when available capacity in the grid exists.

According to BloombergNEF, Europe is on track to exceed 300 GWh of storage capacity by 2030. This is no surprise since BESS developments allow for renewable energy to be integrated into the grid and supplement a country's energy demand. BESS developments stabilise a country's energy infrastructure.