Ilmatar’s first battery energy storage system (BESS) has been commissioned at the Piiparinmäki wind farm in Finland’s North Ostrobothnia.
Head of Technology at Ilmatar Mika Jantunen said: “We are very pleased and proud that the Ainola BESS – whose development and deployment required pioneering solutions and a forward-looking approach – has now reached commercial operation and full market capability.”
Ilmatar acted as project developer and constructor for Ainola and retains a 10% ownership stake in the system.
The company is also responsible for the system’s operational optimization, trading, and both technical and commercial asset management.
The majority owner is Nuveen Infrastructure, an international investor that also acquired the Piiparinmäki wind farm from Ilmatar in 2019.
Jantunen added: “During the implementation of Ainola, we developed efficient processes for the construction of storage systems, system integration, and multi-market use. I’m confident these learnings will greatly benefit our future projects.”
The Ainola BESS has an output of 30MW and a storage capacity of 41MWh, and is designed to operate for at least 15 years.