Grand opening of Alfen’s mega energy storage system in Czech Republic
ALMERE, THE NETHERLANDS – At solar farm Prakšice, Solar Global and Alfen opened the first battery energy storage system (BESS) in Czech Republic. The battery system has a capacity of 1.2 MWh and will be used to balance the fluctuating supply of solar energy with demand patterns. The energy storage system was officially taken into use by the Dutch ambassador Mr. Klompenhouwer.
Solar Global develops and services solar photovoltaic (PV) farms and rooftop PV installations, and currently has some 100 MW capacity under service. “The battery system will accumulate energy from the sun to be available when there is a lack of power in the grid and electricity needs to be released.” says Vítězslav Skopal, the main shareholder and founder of the Solar Global Group.
Andreas Plenk, global sales director energy storage at Alfen, says: “Our modular and standardized storage system made it possible to deliver and implement our system within two and a half months after having received this order. Alfen has experience with many types of storage applications, ranging from smoothening large scale renewable energy sources to load balancing for the charging of electric vehicles. Combining renewables with energy storage is gaining momentum throughout Europe. Parties such as Solar Global are realizing that storage will enhance the return-of-investment of solar PV and wind farms. And we’re only at the beginning of this trend.”
Dutch Ambassador: Kees Klompenhouwer adds: “I’m proud that the energy storage technology of a Dutch company is supporting the Czech transition towards renewable energy”.
Implementing innovative solutions
František Smolka, CEO of Solar Global explains why Solar Global selected Alfen for this project: “Alfen’s proven technology and multiyear experience with utilities throughout Europe ensures that we are implementing the most innovative and reliable system in the market. The energy revolution is in energy storage, renewable sources and electromobility. We look forward to leverage Alfen´s vast experience with state-of-the-art applications throughout our business.”
Next year, Solar Global plans to build a 10 MWh system at Ochoz in the Olomouc Region, which will be the largest BESS in Central and Eastern Europe.