Engie begins construction of 200-MW/800-MWh battery in Belgium

French electric utility Engie SA (EPA:ENGI) has launched construction of a 200-MW/800-MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) at its Vilvoorde site on the outskirts of Brussels in Belgium.

The site, which currently hosts a gas power station, will become home to one of Europe's largest batteries, capable of meeting the electricity needs of 96,000 households. BESS Vilvoorde will be commissioned in two phases of 100 MW each, with the first phase in September 2025 and the second phase in January 2026.

The start of construction comes after the project obtained a construction permit in July 2023 and was selected by Belgian electricity grid operator Elia for capacity remuneration in October 2023. The battery facility has a 15-year contract with Elia.

"With the growing share of renewable energies in the energy mix, the contribution of battery energy storage systems to ensuring the reliability and security of energy systems is becoming crucial,” commented Sebastien Arbola, executive vice president in charge of Flex Gen & Retail activities.

Engie is also developing two other BESS projects in Belgium which already have permits in place, a 100-MW/400-MWh project in Kallo and a 80-MW/320-MWh battery in Drogenbos. The company targets 10 GW of battery capacity globally by 2030. At the end of 2023, it had 1.3 GW of battery capacity in operation and 3.6 GW secured under development.

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