Marija Maisch
Estonia advances 1.1 GWh heat storage, 250 MWh BESS and 800 MWh battery park
Estonia has delivered its largest heat storage facility, begun construction on its largest solar-plus-storage hybrid project, and is preparing to break ground on an 800 MWh battery park in Valga County, set to become the largest in the Baltics.
Japanese utility launches residential battery demand response pilot
Kyushu Electric Power Co. will begin a demonstration project on March 1 using remotely controlled home batteries supplied by Sharp Energy Solutions to ease solar curtailment in southern Japan.
Hydrostor signs California offtake deal for 4 GWh compressed air storage
Hydrostor has secured a 50 MW/400 MWh offtake agreement with California Community Power (CC Power) for its Willow Rock Energy Storage Center, providing firm capacity to six of CC Power’s community choice aggregator members.
Private 660 MWh solar-storage project closes financing in South Africa
Naos‑1 is described as South Africa’s biggest private utility‑scale solar and battery storage project, designed to wheel power to industrial customers.
World’s first 628 Ah grid-scale battery enters operation
EVE Energy says a 200 MW/400 MWh battery energy storage project in China has entered operation, which it describes as the world’s first utility-scale deployment of 628 Ah lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells.
Hungary launches grants for residential battery storage
Hungary has opened applications for a program offering up to HUF 2.5 million ($7,820) per household to support residential battery storage, prioritizing grid-exporting solar users and small rural settlements.
Energy Vault secures 1.5 GWh sodium-ion supply for AI
Switzerland-based Energy Vault has secured an initial 1.5 GWh of sodium-ion battery supply from Peak Energy to develop integrated storage systems for artificial intelligence-focused data centers.
Global BESS capacity tops 250 GW, overtaking pumped hydro for first time
Rystad Energy says it expects global battery energy storage system (BESS) additions to exceed 130 GW/350 GWh in 2026, led by China, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Germany.
100 MW Hertz 1 battery enters operation after Estonia–Finland grid incident
The 100 MW/200 MWh battery energy storage project in Kiisa began operation on Feb. 3 as scheduled – just two weeks after a testing fault at the facility caused the most significant disturbance to the regional power grid since Estonia’s desynchronization from the Russian electricity system.
Europe contracts nearly 24 GWh of BESS under flexibility purchase agreements in 2025
With conventional renewable PPA momentum slowing, Europe’s flexibility market soared in 2025, driven by a surge in fixed-offtake agreements and BESS optimization structures. At the same time, co-located storage gained unprecedented traction, signaling a shift toward more integrated and flexible energy solutions.
