The German regulator BNetzA’s latest draft decision on grid fees from 4 August 2029 onwards still leaves uncertainty for energy storage project business cases.

The Spanish Ministry of Ecological Transition (MITECO) has awarded €360 million (US$415 million) to 1.14GW of solar PV co-located with battery energy storage system (BESS) projects.

There is an opportunity for locally designed and manufactured BESS solutions in Europe, with the possibility of future EU controls of Chinese imports, former head of BESS products at Northvolt said. 

IPP Zelestra has agreed a long-term toll for a 99MW/297MWh BESS project in Germany with the trading arm of UK-based power group Centrica.

Elestor claims its hydrogen-iron flow battery delivers 75%+ round-trip efficiency, a 20-25 year lifespan, and 15€/kWh capex for long-duration storage. 

July was a busy month for large-scale battery storage activity in the UK, with Engie commissioning a system, Masdar and Fidra hitting financial close on projects, Eku Energy buying one, project consents for Aura Power and Starlight Energy, and more.

The largest grid-scale battery energy storage system (BESS) project in the Czech Republic has gone online, supplied by a company invested in by lithium-ion OEM CATL. 

IPP Prosalia has commissioned a 15MW/60MWh battery storage system at a solar PV plant in Portugal, while power group EDP has added one to a hybrid wind and solar project in Spain.

Iron-air battery company Ore Energy has raised US$43 million in a Series A funding round to commercialise its multi-day energy storage technology.

The European Commission (EC) has approved a financial support scheme to accelerate the deployment of battery storage technologies in Slovenia.