The energy sector in Germany is undergoing a revolutionary shift as groundbreaking ceremonies are about to take place in what will be Europe’s strongest battery storage plant. The gigantic 1 GW and 4 GWh energy storage project has the potential to change the storage and further the distribution of renewable energy in Europe. But amidst this technological wonder lies the potential to drastically change Germany’s position in the energy transition race.
LEAG Clean Power drives dramatic energy storage transition
LEAG Clean Power has launched the construction of the GigaBattery Jänschwalde 1000 in collaboration with Fluence Energy. This marks a historic step in energy development within the European continent. The project is set to be situated in Jänschwalde within Germany’s eastern boundary with Poland. Jänschwalde lies within the Lusatia area that was previously dependent on coal-powered industries but has undergone extensive transformation.
The project is one of the cornerstones of LEAG’s GigawattFactory Concept. The latter combines solar technology, wind energy conversion, flexible power plants, and storage facilities to form a closed energy cycle. “One of the biggest challenges within the energy transition has been met with this project,” declared Adi Roesch, LEAG Group CEO. “This is the issue of 24/7 energy supply irrespective of fluctuating renewable capacities.”
The location in Jänschwalde has deep symbolic meaning since the location borders LEAG’s existing lignite-fired 3,000MW power plant, with the cooling towers that will be seen from the location where the battery storage will be constructed. In effect, this location symbolically illustrates the energy transition taking place in Germany.
The Fluence SmartStack technology drives Europe’s biggest battery setup
The project will be carried out by Fluence Energy with its latest technology offering—the SmartStack battery energy storage solution with Lithium Iron phosphate chemistry batteries. This development marks the company’s largest storage project to date. The energy storage capacity per SmartStack system ranges from 7.5MWh with an innovative AC block design that stacks battery components above balance-of-plant components.
The models are packaged in two components that ensure easy transportation and assembly at the project location, though these are substantially higher than standard 20-foot ISO containers that have been adopted by the entire sector. President and CEO of Fluence, Julian Nebreda, pointed out that this demonstration project proves that expertise, vision, and bravery can lead to significant transformation in the energy sector.
The GigaBattery Jänschwalde 1000 has an intended completion date within 2027-2028; this is much faster compared to other energy storage projects. In contrast to other projects, such as Germany’s Goldisthal pumped storage station, it took 28 years to complete development and took another six years to build to reach 1GW and 8GWh capacity.
Project timeline positions Germany ahead of European competitors
The current capacity of large-scale storage in Germany is about 3.2GWh; therefore, this one project alone will increase Germany’s existing storage capacity within the energy grid by more than double that amount. The storage duration is set to be four hours, ensuring that the use of connections to the energy grids is maximized. The latest European projects to come to fruition include RWE’s 400MW/700MWh project in Bavaria and Eco Stor’s 300MW/700MWh project in Saxony-Anhalt; these are still under construction.
“It is only if there is a mix of renewable energy sources and storage sites that can be utilized whenever required and flexible power plants that the future energy sector has any chance,” declared Adi Roesch, the LEAG Group CEO.
The strategic relevance of this project goes beyond the numbers to represent Germany’s commitment to energy security during the nuclear and fossil fuel phase-down. Notably, this mega-scale energy storage project will be essential to the energy grids and energy trading processes. Equally significant is that this project proves the efficacy of mega-scale energy storage to the entire European continent with similar energy transition visions.