Nowadays, it is more important than ever to integrate sustainable and independent solutions to meet our energy needs into the power supply. Storage solutions play a key role in modern and renewable energy supply. This is because large battery storage systems provide security for an increasingly polluted infrastructure by reducing the load on the power grids. At the same time, they make it possible to switch to renewable energy sources in a network-compatible manner by offsetting the volatility in generation. Our new project “Battery Storage Chain Northern Bavaria” impressively shows how battery storage systems in Germany can be implemented in a very short time and used to serve the grid.
At the end of last year, we at Kyon Energy were able to successfully connect two new battery storage systems to the power grid and start regular operation after initial test runs. At the beginning of this year, the ceremonial opening of the battery storage chain in northern Bavaria followed together with our partners and representatives from politics and media. An important event to draw attention to the urgency of building up storage capacities in Germany.
The storage chain was built at two locations in northern Bavaria and has a total capacity of 42 megawatts. Six storage units were built at each project location, consisting of housings with battery cells, inverters and transformers. Lithium-ion battery cells were used, in this case from Samsung SDI. Due to the longer lifespan and high energy density, this type of battery is particularly suitable.
Each project site has an output of 20.7 MW and a gross storage capacity of 24 MWh. To classify these figures: On average, a household (four people) in Germany consumes around 3,500 kilowatt hours per year, which corresponds to just under 10 kilowatt hours per day. A 20-megawatt battery storage system alone is therefore able to supply more than 2,000 households with electricity for a day.
Thanks to their flexible design and compactness, the battery storage systems can be adapted very well to the given location conditions and optimized accordingly. Compared to other generation plants or storage options, this saves a great deal of usable space. At each of the two locations of the battery storage chain in Northern Bavaria, less than 2,500 square meters were needed to construct the plants.
More detailed information on how to set up a large battery storage system can also be found in our blog article “How battery storage systems are constructed.”
Both battery storage systems are connected via substations to the German medium-voltage grid with a voltage of 20 kV. Since connection, they have been providing important network-related system services. They are particularly active in the following applications:
Thanks to their high efficiency levels (over 90%) and extremely fast responsiveness (full power is available within fractions of a second in case of doubt), the storage systems used are very suitable for compensating for short-term fluctuations in the power grid. In doing so, they bring security to the critical power supply infrastructure. At the same time, they are increasingly displacing conventional power plants and are thus making an important contribution to Germany's decarbonization goals in the area of power generation.
Building a battery storage system is a complex project that requires thorough planning and preparation. From location assessment to start-up, it is critical to understand and carefully follow every aspect of the process to ensure a successful end result. The start of both projects was given with the acquisition of land and the securing of the grid connection. Following positive feedback from network operator N-Ergie Netz GmbH, the building applications were submitted in late spring 2021. In parallel, the battery storage systems were planned and developed, during which our project developers defined the technical requirements and specifications of the systems, taking into account building regulations and location-related conditions. The components were selected with a view to optimising efficiency for each location. Following a positive building permit, construction began as early as October 2021. Just eleven months later, the two battery storage systems were connected to the power grid for initial test runs in September 2022. Since October, the plants have been providing the power grid with important network-related system services.
The project thus impressively demonstrates how the energy revolution can be achieved through efficient cooperation with the authorities involved and despite a tense situation on the supplier and logistics market. The comparatively short implementation period of battery storage projects represents a decisive advantage for the rapid success of the energy revolution. They can undercut most other renewable energy expansion plants both in terms of approval and construction. Especially in times of crisis, this is an important factor in being able to make a rapid contribution to security of supply and price stability.
The many stakeholders must be involved equally from the start. In addition to our partners Eco Stor (storage manufacturer) and VERBUND, Austria's largest energy supplier (storage operator), the municipalities were also intensively involved in every process step. In this way, local opportunities and challenges could be included in the planning right from the start and potential risks could be identified quickly and solved together.
The two new battery storage projects in Diespeck and Iphofen represent a further important step towards sustainable and reliable energy supply and the development of storage capacities in Germany. With a total of 42 MW, the two plants are now the most powerful in Bavaria. The projects also illustrate how important contributions to solving the energy crisis can be made in the shortest possible time through efficient processes involving cooperation between municipalities, authorities, suppliers, investors and project developers. Because this is particularly urgently needed in Germany — measures that can be implemented in the short term. With a project implementation period of less than 16 months, from finding space to commissioning, battery storage systems in northern Bavaria are making an impressively rapid contribution, especially in current times of crisis. Following her example, many more battery storage projects will follow in Germany
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