Eneco nudges Dutch govt with 50-MW battery project in Belgium

June 7 (Renewables Now) - Dutch utility Eneco said today it is undertaking preparatory study works for the installation of a 50-MW/200-MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in Ville-sur-Haine, the Belgian region of Wallonia.

The company has already secured the required permit and has also ordered the batteries – 53 Megapacks from Tesla – with plans to complete the project by the end of next year. It said that the planned BESS will be able to supply power to the grid for four hours.

At present, Eneco has 128 onshore wind turbines and almost 400,000 solar panels in operation in Belgium and is also participating in the country’s two largest offshore wind farms.

The company used the occasion to advocate for certain actions in the Netherlands. It noted that batteries play a key role in achieving its goal to become fully climate neutral by 2035 but added that such project investments lag behind at home compared to neighboring countries.

“We call on the Dutch government to learn from policies in Belgium and Germany so that the Netherlands can actually achieve a climate-neutral electricity supply by 2035,” Eneco said in a statement.