Integrating renewable energy into power grids and systems remains an obstacle since renewables cannot always match supply with demand.
One solution is storing renewably-generated electricity in batteries, enabling its use as needed. Battery storage is a key technology to support the large-scale integration of renewable energy into energy systems and to speed up the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy.
With the support of Northvolt, Vestas is looking to bring a competitive and sustainable hybrid storage solutions to the market to help increase the uptake of more renewables. This is being done both through existing research and development, and by combining it with unique competencies and experiences of new partners. In this way, Northvolt will become a part of Vestas’ hybrid supplier ecosystem.
Northvolt, with the support of Vestas, is looking to better understand the needs of the renewable energy sector in order to develop batteries for solution providers and OEMs.
Vestas’ Chief Technology Officer, Anders Vede, stressed the importance of the collaboration, saying it would “enable Vestas to define, challenge and improve battery storage offering for customers that need hybrid and storage solutions.”
Peter Carlsson, Co-Founder and CEO of Northvolt , pointed to Vestas as a true global leader in enabling the world’s transition to renewable energy.
The two technology leaders are aiming to create and optimize a means of integrating battery storage solutions into wind turbines and full power plant system design in order to enable Vestas to ensure more certainty and predictability in power output for greater grid stability and compliance with emerging grid requirements.
They also hope to develop control systems able to integrate battery storage systems with other renewable energy technologies.
Battery costs have traditionally been too high for wide-scale use, but it is anticipated that adoption of batteries for energy storage will increase dramatically when the costs drop and create a more attractive business case for renewable energy and storage than that of traditional fossil fuels.
Photo Courtesy of Vestas Wind Systems A/S
