The technology group Wärtsilä is completing the commissioning of its first energy storage project in the Netherlands, which is the country’s largest system to date. The company was joined by His Excellency Rob Jetten, Minister for Climate and Energy, and the CEO of GIGA Storage BV, Ruud Nijs, to celebrate the milestone during a ribbon cutting ceremony on Oct 6, 2022. The facility, called the GIGA Buffalo battery, is a 24-megawatt (MW) / 48-megawatt hour (MWh) energy storage system consisting of Wärtsilä’s Gridsolv Quantum and GEMS Digital Energy Platform.
The GIGA Buffalo battery is co-located with wind and solar assets at the Wageningen University & Research test centre in Lelystad. It provides Eneco, the leading energy provider in the Netherlands, with the energy capacity necessary to alleviate intermittency from renewables and regulate energy frequency while adding reliability to the grid. It also improves revenues by optimising the value of the renewable assets and providing capacity that can be dispatched during peak demand.
“We’re pleased to see this landmark project complete construction and come online. Battery storage is critical for the stabilisation of the country’s electric grid and imperative for reaching our clean energy goals,” said Ruud Nijs, the CEO of GIGA Storage BV.
The Dutch government has set a goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 49 percent by 2030 and a 95 percent reduction by 2050. Recent reports indicate that the Netherlands will need between 29 and 54-gigawatts (GW) of energy storage capacity by 2050 to support the increase in renewable energy generation and ensure reliability as the country meets its decarbonisation goals.
“We celebrate another successful energy storage deployment globally, and our first here in the Netherlands. Congratulations to the Netherlands on this victory in their transition toward a net-zero future,” said Jens Norrgård, Director, Europe, Wärtsilä Energy.
The system includes Wärtsilä’s GridSolv Quantum, a fully integrated, modular and compact energy storage system. Wärtsilä’s smart energy management system, GEMS Digital Energy Platform, uses machine learning and historic and real-time data analytics to optimise the complete system. It is optimised with Wärtsilä’s Service+ GAP solution, which provides system maintenance with performance guarantees.
Learn more:
Wärtsilä’s Energy Storage and Optimisation Technology
Project Spotlight: GIGA Storage BV
Insights article: Netherlands – a small giant in energy storage
Media contact for more information on this release:
Mirja-Maija Santala
Manager, Marketing & Communications
Wärtsilä Energy
Mob: +358 400 793 827
mirja-maija.santala@wartsila.com
Image: Wärtsilä and partners at the site opening of the 24 MW / 48 MWh GIGA Buffalo battery in the Netherlands to provide grid stability. © GIGA Storage BV
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Wärtsilä in brief
Wärtsilä is a global leader in innovative technologies and lifecycle solutions for the marine and energy markets. We emphasise innovation in sustainable technology and services to help our customers continuously improve their environmental and economic performance. Our dedicated and passionate team of 17,000 professionals in more than 200 locations in 68 countries shape the decarbonisation transformation of our industries across the globe. In 2021, Wärtsilä’s net sales totalled EUR 4.8 billion. Wärtsilä is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki.
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Wärtsilä Energy in brief
Wärtsilä Energy leads the transition towards a 100% renewable energy future. We help our customers in decarbonisation by developing market-leading technologies. These cover future-fuel enabled balancing power plants, hybrid solutions, energy storage and optimisation technology, including the GEMS energy management platform. Wärtsilä Energy’s lifecycle services are designed to increase efficiency, promote reliability and guarantee operational performance. Our track record comprises 76 GW of power plant capacity and 110 energy storage systems delivered to 180 countries around the world. https://www.wartsila.com/energy