Giga Green Turtle, Europe’s largest proposed battery storage project

The 600 MW/2,400 MWh Giga Green Turtle is currently Europe’s largest proposed battery storage project. Developed by Giga Storage, an Amstelveen, Netherlands-based energy storage company that develops, realizes, and deploys large-scale energy storage projects, the facility will be built on an industrial estate that was previously home to a zinc factory in Dilsen-Stokkem, a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg.

The project site is reportedly adjacent to a new 380 kV high-voltage station and along the high-voltage line from Van Eyck to Gramme. The station and the high-voltage line are operated by Elia, the Belgian high-voltage transmission system operator and part of Elia Group, 1 of Europe’s top 5 Transmission System Operators.

According to reports, in the past, there were plans for the development and construction of a battery park at this exact location by another energy company before Giga Storage acquired the land from the zinc factory owners.

Development of the Europe’s largest proposed battery storage project

The Dutch energy storage developer announced plans for the development of the Giga Green Turtle and the submission of a permit application back in January 2024. In April 2024, the company revealed that it had obtained the irrevocable permit for the development of the 600 MW/2,400 MWh BESS project. This milestone according to reports ensures that financing for the project can be arranged.

Construction is reportedly expected to start in 2025 with an estimated completion in 2028. Upon completion, Europe’s largest battery storage facility will feature a total of 20 batteries, each of which will have an inverter, as well as 185 medium voltage transformers, five high-voltage transformers with a total capacity of 1,500 MVA, and 25,650 square meters of planting zone around the new battery park.

According to Giga Storage, the facility shall have the capacity to store wind and solar power equivalent to the average energy consumption of 330,000 families per day and inject it into the grid during periods of low generation.

Furthermore, the company said that Europe’s largest proposed battery storage project will play a key role in Belgium and Europe’s energy transition. By developing utility-scale energy storage at strategic locations, according to Ruud Nijs the company’s CEO, energy prices will become more stable, and Belgium and Europe at large will become less dependent on the import of (fossil) energy.

Giga Storage contribution to Belgium and Europe’s energy transition

The Giga Storage CEO also mentioned that while the Giga Green Turtle will be the largest battery in Europe, much more storage capacity will be needed in the coming years. For that reason, the company said that it aims to deliver 5 GW of BESS projects in the continent by 2030.

In Belgium alone, the company aims for 3 GW of battery energy storage capacity by the end of the decade. In September last year, it set foot on the Belgian market by unveiling plans for a 1,200-MWh battery in the province of Limburg, just across the Dutch border.