Boralex has commissioned its second energy storage unit in France.
The battery, which has a storage capacity of more than 3.3 megawatt hours (MWh), is installed on the site of the Plouguin wind farm, in Finistère, Brittany.
Boralex was selected for the project following the 2019 launch of a call for expressions of interest by the Brittany Regional Council.
Endorsed and supported by local association Smart Ideas to Link Energies (SMILE), the project was co-financed by the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
The system used for the project was developed by Entech, a storage systems specialist based in Quimper (Finistère).
The Plouguin storage unit will support stability of the French electricity grid, particularly in Brittany, and contribute to the integration of renewable energy into the electricity grid.
“In the current context of accelerating renewable energy development and growing energy needs, energy storage is a promising solution for greater grid flexibility and more efficient consumption of competitive, low-carbon energy,” said executive vice president and general manager of Boralex, Europe Nicolas Wolff.
“Thanks to sites like Plouguin and, before it, Vallée de l’Arce (Aube, Grand Est), we are looking beyond just producing green energy. We are putting in place innovative services to accompany the rise of renewable energies and contribute to the energy transition,” he added.
This commissioning is in line with Boralex’s ongoing efforts to gradually roll out a battery energy storage and tap into the significant cost reductions associated with storage technology.
Its storage project portfolio now stands at over 800MW worldwide.