Pure energy: We are building the energy grid of the future

Today Battery 1 was installed next to our Pure Energie office in Enschede. With this we store self-generated renewable energy for later use. For us, this is the first of more energy storage projects at locations where we realize wind and solar farms. In the battery, we store solar energy that we generate from the solar panels on our roof and carport. The storage of renewable energy plays a key role in the energy transition, as it makes us independent of fossil fuels and provides a solution to an overloaded electricity grid.

Sustainable solution for the climate and power grid

When we store renewable energy, we use it at times when the wind is not blowing, or in this case, the sun is not shining. This brings us closer to our goal of becoming independent of fossil fuels. The amount of sustainably generated energy in the Netherlands has been increasing for years. A good development. However, we increasingly see that this energy is all generated at the same time and thus goes into the electricity grid. This can overload that electricity grid, which we call grid congestion. Due to the large number of solar panels in the Netherlands, we are currently seeing this mainly at times when the sun is shining and high in the sky, while we have a shortage of green energy in the morning and in the evening. The battery helps us to have green energy available when it is needed and to relieve the electricity grid.

Storage capacity of 350 households

Battery 1 next to our building has a capacity of 1 megawatt (MW) and a storage capacity of 3 megawatt hours (MWh). That works out to 3,000 kilowatt hours (kWh). To give an idea, an average household consumes about 8 to 9 kilowatt hours per day. So the capacity of the battery is equal to the daily power consumption of about 350 households.

Next energy storage projects

This project is the first of many more storage projects: "I see Battery 1 as a blueprint for the batteries we will build in the Netherlands in the coming years," said colleague Ruben Poppink. He is business unit manager of our storage branch and has been developing and preparing energy storage and battery placement for many years.

Subsequent projects are already in the pipeline, including Battery Green. At the high-voltage substation of Wind Plan Green, where we are currently building wind turbines, we are developing a battery with a storage capacity 30 times larger. That station will supply power to eight wind farms in this plan. Thus, what is generated locally can also be delivered and consumed nearby faster.

Source: pure energy