Q Energy kicks off work on 35-MW BESS in France

September 28 (Renewables Now) - European renewables developer Q Energy has started construction work on a 35-MW/44-MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in northeastern France, described as one of the largest storage facilities in the country.

The BESS, named Merbette, is being built at the Emile Huchet power plant in the town of Saint-Avold. It is part of owner GazelEnergie’s push for the green transformation of the coal-fired plant.

Merbette will house 24 battery containers and will be able to store enough electricity to meet the daily power consumption of around 10,000 people. It is the first of a number of energy storage projects that Q Energy is working on.

“We are currently driving a development pipeline of more than 1 GW of ESS projects across Europe. 400 MW of these will be located in France alone,” said Q Energy’s CEO Sang Chull Chung.