Slovenians Invest in Energy Storage: Own Your Energy

The Slovenian technology company “Ngen” plans to invest approximately 50 million euros in a battery energy storage project in Latvia using “Tesla” technologies.

The decision on investments in the Baltic States is related to the synchronization of the Baltic States with the European continental power grid, which has opened up new business opportunities for ensuring the stability of the energy system. Currently, the electricity supply system lacks flexibility, but this problem can be solved with energy storage technologies. The project envisages the creation of a battery system with a capacity of 100 megawatts (MW) and a storage capacity of up to 200 megawatt hours (MWh). In order to implement it, “Ngen” will buy the company “Liepāja ESS”.

“We have concluded an agreement with “Liepāju ESS” for the connection of a 100 MW/200 MWh battery at the Grobiņa substation. The next step is the conclusion of the connection agreement. The planned batteries are an important volume for the flexibility and stability of the Latvian energy system. Grobiņa is a strategically important place in the energy system – the first synchronous compensator for system inertia and stability in Latvia has been built there, the “Kurzeme arc” passes through Grobiņa, which is not only important for the national an important infrastructure object, but also connects our energy system in the south with Lithuania and in the north with Estonia. The investments made by the “High Voltage Network” (AST) in Kurzeme also allow the transmission network to connect new users and contribute to the economic development of the region, which is also confirmed by the interest of the Slovenian company “Ngen”, says Arnis Daugulis, a member of the board of AST, admitting that the role of batteries in the energy system of Latvia will increase significantly in the coming years. “Currently, the total capacity of electricity storage systems, or BESS, installed in Latvia is approximately 200 MW, but in the coming years it would be desirable to have at least ten times more capacity. Batteries are a multifunctional infrastructure that contributes to the flexibility and operational stability of the energy system. In addition to the energy storage function, batteries are also able to provide auxiliary services necessary for the energy system, such as frequency regulation reserves and voltage regulation. By increasing the integration of renewable energy, replacing more expensive peak generation and providing cheaper auxiliary services, batteries also contribute to the reduction of electricity supply costs,” says A. Daugulis.

Currently, the possibility of connecting the battery to the power grid in the form of a hybrid connection together with the power station is widely used, thus simplifying and reducing the cost of connecting to the power grid.