EDP, Rondo’s solar and 100 MWh heat battery to power Heineken operations in Portugal

Central de Cervejas e Bebidas, the brewery and malt house owned by Heineken Group in Portugal, has signed an agreement with US manufacturer Rondo Energy and Portuguese utility EDP to install a 100 MWh thermal battery at its Lisbon plant.

The companies said the system will be among the largest thermal batteries in the global beverage industry and marks Portugal’s first major heat purchase agreement, a model that combines renewable energy generation with on-site heat storage. The project is still subject to standard administrative and regulatory approvals.

Under the terms of the deal, EDP will build a 7 MWp solar plant on the brewery’s site to power Rondo’s thermal battery. The system stores renewable electricity as high-temperature heat and supplies continuous, carbon-free steam, replacing fossil-fuel boilers. Using refractory bricks to store energy, the battery can deliver steam on demand at pressures above 100 bar and operate continuously for up to 24 hours – without combustion or emissions.

The battery will also be charged with renewable electricity from the grid through a long-term flexible power purchase agreement (PPA) between Central de Cervejas e Bebidas and EDP, covering about 25 GWh per year.

Central de Cervejas e Bebidas already operates two solar plants built by EDP, with a combined capacity of 2 MWp. The company said the project could serve as a model for other energy-intensive industries, including food and beverage, paper, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals.

From pv magazine Spain