HELLENiQ ENERGY has officially commissioned its first battery energy storage project at its Industrial Facilities in Thessaloniki. The investment, worth approximately €50 million, marks a major milestone for the Group and strengthens its presence in a sector expected to play a decisive role in the energy transition.
Developed through HELLENiQ Renewables, the project has an installed capacity of 100 MW and a storage capacity of 200 MWh. It is the first installation of this scale to be developed in Greece and one of the largest in Southeast Europe. Its operation directly addresses one of the key challenges accompanying the rapid expansion of renewable energy sources. When output from solar and wind farms exceeds demand or grid absorption capacity, a portion of available energy can be curtailed. Battery storage allows that energy to be stored and used at a later time, helping to reduce these losses and maximize the utilization of green power generation.
The project will complete at least one full charge-discharge cycle per day, storing more than 200 MWh of electricity. This amount is roughly equivalent to fully charging 3,000 electric vehicles every single day.
In addition, the facility will provide flexibility and balancing services, reinforcing the stability of the electricity system and contributing to the country’s energy security. Energy storage is considered critical for the further development of renewables, as it facilitates their smooth integration into the grid and supports more efficient management of generated electricity.
The installation was built on an area of approximately 100 acres and includes three storage stations and 56 battery arrays using Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) technology with a liquid cooling system. To connect the facility to the National Electricity Transmission System, a new 33/150 kV step-up substation and an underground high-voltage transmission line approximately five kilometers long were constructed.
The project was selected through the first competitive tender process organized by RAAEY (the Regulatory Authority for Energy) for storage systems, and was implemented under Greece’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan “Greece 2.0,” with funding from the European Union – NextGenerationEU.
The investment is part of HELLENiQ ENERGY’s strategic expansion into electricity and renewable energy. HELLENiQ Renewables’ development portfolio exceeds 6 GW, with more than 1 GW dedicated to storage projects across Greece, Romania, Cyprus, and Bulgaria. The company’s second storage project, located in Florina with a capacity of 50 MW and 200 MWh, is expected to be completed in the near future.
