Brazil sets rules for first battery storage auction amid curtailment rise

Brazil’s Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) and the National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel) have published the rules for the country’s first battery storage auction, establishing two procurement rounds in December 2026 for grid-scale energy storage systems.

The auctions will contract battery storage capacity from August 2028 under 15-year agreements. One round will be restricted to projects meeting domestic content requirements defined by Brazilian development bank BNDES, while a second round will be open to all eligible storage systems.

Projects must offer at least 30 MW of power capacity, sustain output for a minimum of four hours, achieve round-trip efficiency of at least 85%, and declare zero variable operating costs.

The contracts will provide fixed annual revenue, paid in monthly installments and subject to performance-based reductions. The National System Operator (ONS) will be able to dispatch contracted systems for up to two four-hour cycles per day, with a maximum of 366 cycles annually.

ANEEL has also approved a regulatory framework for energy storage systems, including a 35-year authorization period and a maximum 54-month deadline for commercial operation following project approval.

The auction framework is intended to support deployment of grid-scale battery storage as Brazil seeks to manage rising levels of renewable energy curtailment and increasing demand for system flexibility.

From pv magazine Brazil