Latvia unveils first grid-scale battery as it prepares to swap Russian grid for Europe

As the Baltic states of Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia prepare to decouple their combined electricity grid from Russia, in favor of Europe, in February 2025, Latvia has activated its first utility-scale BESS.

The wind power unit of Estonian energy company Utilitas has added a 10 MW/20 MWh BESS to its 58.8 MW Targale Wind Park, which has been operating since 2022.

Chinese company Hoymiles announced it supplied the six 3.44 MWh BESS units via its Hoypower subsiduary, along with the project’s 3.45 MW power conversion system.

A press release issued by Utilitas Wind, on Nov. 1, 2024, stated the project will be connected to the grid “this autumn,” indicating connection before Dec. 21, 2024.

The utility said the €7 million ($7.54 million) project would feature six BESS containers and three inverter and transformer units plus a distribution-point container.

Stakeholders quoted in the Utilitas Wind release made oblique references to the Feb. 7, 2025, date when the Baltic states are due to decouple from the 300 GW/1.2 TWh-per-year BRELL (Belarus, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) grid. The Baltic nations are due to synchronize their shared grid with Europe’s network two days later.

“We have been actively working on this project for two years and are proud to contribute to strengthening Latvia’s energy security” said Utilitas Wind SIA Board Member Renārs Urbanovičs, quoted in the press release.

Climate and Energy Minister of Latvia, Kaspars Melnis, said, “Such hybrid parks, combining different forms of renewable energy generation, will become common practice in the future, ensuring a stable, minimally weather-dependent energy supply. I am pleased that the bar has been set high for developers of new wind farms, which also plays an important role in the context of Latvia’s energy security.”

Utilitas Wind said Finland’s OP Corporate Bank had provided an unspecified volume of loans to help finance the storage project.