The Scheldt Battery

The Scheldt Battery is live! Emmett Green realizes innovative energy storage on a shared grid connection with a polder pumping station and tidal culvert of the Scheldestromen Water Board.

More efficient use of one grid connection

Energy transition is all about smarter use of scarce capacity. TenneT and Stedin indicate that the electricity grid is also overcrowded in Zeeland. Grid connections are scarce and expansion of the electricity grid is taking a long time, while many existing connections are only partially utilized. At the same time, there is a growing need for flexible energy storage, grid balancing and congestion management.

The Scheldebatterij is a large-scale 1 MW and 2.3 MWh battery storage system in Zeeland, strategically placed on the site of a polder pumping station managed by the Scheldestromen Water Board. The project shows that much can be possible within an existing grid connection, as the energy storage system shares it with a polder pumping station and a tidal culvert operated by the Water Board. Because the pumping station mainly activates when the water level is too high, there is often space left over on the grid connection. The Scheldt Battery can use the grid connection at these times. Emmett Green applied for the permit, realized the financing and oversaw the procurement of the system.

“There is often a lot of opportunity to use existing grid connections more efficiently by sharing with multiple assets.”

This battery system delivers with balancing services important flexibility to the power grid and combats grid congestion with redispatch. In addition, under certain circumstances, the Scheldt Battery could assume a role as an additional emergency power supply for the polder pumping station.