Operating in 12 European countries, the solar energy company Nordic Solar is investing heavily in integrating battery storage into its portfolio of solar park projects and is now launching the construction of its first project, which is located in Denmark.
The battery will be set up in Borup in the Municipality of Hillerod on Zealand and has a storage capacity of 10 MWh. To increase value creation from the combination of energy production and storage in the roll-out of renewable energy, Nordic Solar is planning to introduce more batteries in the future.
The project marks the beginning of a strategic expansion of the company's solar energy production, involving the integration of BESS into the future project development planned by Nordic Solar in the past few years to be ready for the development which the market is facing, i.e. increasing electrification and implementation of more renewable energy.
"Energy market trends indicate that a combination of solar energy and battery storage will play a key role in the energy transition. In the European market where we are active, there is a strong focus on being able to combine the production of solar energy with storage, not least by the system operator, because flexibility is absolutely crucial to the energy system now as well as in the future. Solutions that help balance the electricity grid are needed, and, in this connection, batteries play an important role. As a solar energy producer, we are able to contribute positively as we produce more renewable energy," says Nikolaj Holtet Hoff, CEO of Nordic Solar.
With the commencement of its construction in Borup, Nordic Solar is also turning the first sod for a broader business model. Nordic Solar has an additional 25 battery storage projects in the pipeline, and the battery storage capacity of the total portfolio is almost 1 GWh.
"We expect the market for battery storage to grow rapidly in the coming years, and entering the BESS market opens up a number of new opportunities for increasing value creation of our European solar energy projects on various levels. Batteries are a strong addition to our business model with the potential for new revenue streams, providing an extra leg to stand on in the roll-out of more renewable energy by all the projects in our development portfolio. At the same time, as an energy producer, we actively contribute to supporting the flexibility as well as the stability of the energy system, which we consider to be a step in the right direction and which enables us to work together across the industry and the market towards the transition and increased electrification of society," says Nikolaj Holtet Hoff.
Strengthened organisation with skills in the development of storage projects
The Borup battery project is the result of a successful collaboration with Hillerod Municipality and Hybrid Greentech, which in the spring won the Green Power Award 2024, handed out by the Danish business organisation Green Power Denmark, for its innovative approach to the development of intelligent storage solutions that contribute to electrification and transition. Hybrid Greentech also participates in both the construction and operation of the battery.
In recent years, Nordic Solar has focused on its own development of solar energy projects, and the battery project in Borup is no exception:
"As part of our strategic focus on battery solutions, we have made sure to prepare our organisation for developing and subsequently building the projects ourselves. In terms of skills, this means that we are ready to execute on the co-location of batteries, which will be established with both existing and future solar parks going forward. By building a strong organisation which has the competencies in-house, we will be able to work with agility and speed on the production and roll-out of more renewable energy, while at the same time increasing the value added by ensuring more renewable energy when the sun has set, and demand for electricity increases," explains Nikolaj Holtet Hoff.
