Two developers, O2X and Ingrid Capacity have begun work on two battery energy storage system projects in Sweden totaling 60MW of power. OX2 has begun work on the Bredhälla BESS (battery energy storage system) project in the village of the same name. It is located in the southern county of Kronoberg, directly adjacent to an E.ON substation. Construction will begin this month, with completion scheduled for the spring of 2024.
The battery energy storage system will provide ancillary services to Svenska Kraftnät, the state-owned transmission system operator (TSO). It will also load shift to assist in grid balance. It will be near two of OX2’s ongoing wind power projects. However, no mention was made of co-location or infrastructure sharing.
The Bredhälla battery energy storage system project in Sweden
“The Bredhälla project increases the security and flexibility of southern Sweden’s electricity supply,” said Michiel van Asseldonk, OX2’s system services, and energy storage manager. Intermittency on the Swedish grid is increasing as more renewable energy sources come online. Additionally, the country’s existing large pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) portfolio’s capacity to balance this is running out. Battery storage projects are being launched to make up the difference as the country strives for net zero emissions by 2045.
O2X’s announcement comes just a few weeks after Ingrid Capacity announced its latest BESS project. It will be a 20MW unit in Vimmerby, Kalmar County. It didn’t say much, but its previous BESS project used lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery cells.
“The transition to renewable energy is made possible by energy storage. At the second level, our systems respond to requests to balance the difference between production and consumption in the electricity grid. “If there is an electricity deficit, the battery can discharge to the grid to compensate. Similarly, it can charge from the grid when there is a temporary surplus,” explained Nicklas Bäcker, chief strategy officer at Ingrid Capacity.
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Ingrid Capacity’s battery energy storage system project in Sweden
The company made headlines a few months ago when it announced the construction of a 70MW BESS for the first half of 2024. It is currently the country’s largest announced project. Vattenfall’s 5MW/20MWh system in Uppsala and Primrock’s 5.4MW unit in Falkenberg are the two largest operational units in Sweden. Furthermore, Alfen is delivering a 10MW/11.9MWh system for electricity network company Ellevio in Grums, western Sweden.
According to the company, Ingrid Capacity is working on 500MW of energy storage projects in Sweden. It was founded in early 2022. It is majority-owned by Swedish companies Engelbrekt Utveckling, Springbacka, and Neptunia. Northvolt, the lithium-ion gigafactory firm that has raised approximately US$8 billion to manufacture sustainable battery cells in Sweden and Germany, as well as BESS equipment in Poland, is also based in the Nordic country.
