TotalEnergies touts largest battery energy storage facility in France

TotalEnergies has launched what it calls the largest battery-based energy storage facility in France.

Located at the Flandres center in Dunkirk, the site has a power capacity of 61 MW and a total storage capacity of 61 MWh. It is made up of 27 containers of 2.5 MWh, designed and assembled by Saft, TotalEnergies’ battery affiliate which develops advanced batteries for industry. This project was selected as part of the long-term tender launched by the French Electricity Transmission Network (RTE) in February 2020, where TotalEnergies was awarded battery storage capacities in France.

The full commissioning of the site follows the start-up of the first 25 MW unit in January 2021.

TotalEnergies said it has commissioned the largest battery-based energy storage facility in France.

The commissioning of this site marks a new step in the development of TotalEnergies’ battery energy storage capabilities.

The site is designed to help ensure sufficient electricity supply in the national grid, especially during peak winter periods as well as guarantee grid security by providing fast reserve services. It will also support the production of renewable energy by allowing more green electricity to be integrated into the grid, the company said.

“We are proud of the commissioning of the largest storage site in France and to be able to support RTE, the grid operator, in guaranteeing the stability of the grid and thus enabling the increased development of renewable energies”, said Vincent Stoquart, Senior Vice President Renewables at TotalEnergies. “With the success of this project and Saft’s expertise in batteries for energy storage, TotalEnergies intends to deploy its storage solutions in countries where the Company is actively developing renewable energies”.