Enel to retrofit battery storage at century-old pumped hydro storage plant

Italian energy company Enel will integrate a 4 MW/8 MWh lithium-ion BESS with the 43.4 MW Dossi pumped storage hydroelectric power plant, in Bergamo province.

Enel’s BESS4Hydro project, backed by the European Union’s Innovation Fund, aims to improve the efficiency and flexibility of hydroelectric energy storage. The battery will act as a secondary reservoir, storing electricity and injecting it into the grid via the same connection point as the pumped storage plant, ensuring uninterrupted supply.

The Dossi power station, built in 1923 in the municipality of Valbondione, includes a complex, high-altitude hydraulic system. The Valmorta dam was completed in the same year, followed by the Barbellino dam, in 1931.

The European Commission said, “The main objective is to equate the grid balancing capabilities of pumped storage plants with those of conventional thermal power plants and to improve adaptability to fluctuations in demand and market dynamics.” The body added, “The innovative design improves the provision of [grid] ancillary services, extends service life, and optimizes efficiency by reducing wear on turbine components. In addition, the integration of BESS allows autonomous operation during periods of inactivity of pumped storage plants, ensuring continuous energy supply and grid stability.”

The project is part of the Strategic Technologies Platform for Europe (STEP), a European Commission initiative dedicated to boosting investment in critical technology in Europe. Projects that have obtained the commission’s STEP label “provide an innovative and cutting-edge element with significant economic potential for the EU market.”

From pv magazine España.