Sumitomo seeks to bring redox flow systems to Europe, MENA with CMI partnership

LinkedIn
Twitter
Reddit
Facebook
Email
Sumitomo Electric redox flow cell stack, which received UL product certification in 2015. Image: Sumitomo Electric Industries.

The developer of one of the world’s biggest battery energy storage systems (BESS) installed globally so far will be taking its vanadium redox flow systems into the international market, beginning with a pilot in Belgium.

Japan’s Sumitomo Electric Industries, which put a 60MWh vanadium redox flow system into operation to assist the integration of renewables on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido, has formed a strategic partnership with Belgium-headquartered CMI Group to market the former’s Redox Battery in international markets.

The agreement is expected to give Sumitomo better access to regions including Europe and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The Japanese company described CMI Group as a “European partner capable of installing their (Sumitomo’s) Redox Battery and integrating it into the balance of system”.

CMI has been established in power generation – beginning with steam engines – for about 200 years, running the CMI Energy subsidiary and now also moving in to batteries with the creation of CMI Energy Storage. The company runs engineering procurement and construction (EPC) activities in energy storage and will now include Sumitomo’s flow technology in its offerings to market.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Enjoy 12 months of exclusive analysis

Not ready to commit yet?
  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Annual digital subscription to the PV Tech Power journal
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

A pilot project will be established at CMI’s headquarters in Seraing, Belgium, where 2MWp of solar PV will be paired with about 3MWh of “various types of batteries”, scheduled to begin commercial operation in 2018. The project will trial a number of different use cases for energy storage, including self-consumption of onsite generated PV power, grid stabilisation and arbitrage.

As we have seen over the past few months at Energy-Storage.News, competition in the flow battery space, as a handful of makers race to commercialise and gain visibility in the market, is becoming fierce. Various exploration deals for raw materials and sales partnerships have been established, while in China, government support is expected to sire several flow battery systems in the range of hundreds of megawatt-hours of energy storage per system.

Read Next

October 2, 2025
The TSO of Italy has completed its first MACSE auctions for energy storage, procuring 10GWh of capacity at what the NHOA CEO called ‘exceptionally competitive prices’.
October 1, 2025
Dr Mahdi Behrengrad, head of energy storage at Pacifico Energy, speaks to Energy-Storage.news ahead of next week’s Energy Storage Summit Asia 2025 in Manila.
September 25, 2025
Microsoft, Sunrock, Zurich, and AlphaStruxure are among 20 participants joining Schneider Electric to deploy community-based energy systems across the US, supporting public and private sector organisations with “innovative solutions” and financing.
September 19, 2025
IPP EP Produzione has ordered 220MWh of BESS from inverter and energy storage firm Sungrow in Italy, with a storage-focused capacity auction scheme just 11 days away.
Premium
September 18, 2025
ESN Premium speaks to Matt Harper, president of flow battery company Invinity Energy Systems, about pursuing a competitive advantage in an emerging space.

Most Popular

Email Newsletter