Polat Enerji completes largest wind-BESS hybrid power plant in Turkey

Polat Holding’s joint venture with İş Enerji has received the license for the 12.8 MW battery energy storage system (BESS) integrated with its Ege wind power plant of 15.2 MW in western Turkey. It is the largest hybrid power plant of its kind in the country.

In cooperation with SolarToday Türkiye and iNOVAT, Polat Enerji reached another milestone in combining renewable energy plants with battery storage. The Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources of Turkey has issued an approval for its BESS with 12.8 MW in operating power and a capacity of 15.2 MWh.

The facility is integrated with the company’s Ege wind power plant. They are located in the Kemalpaşa district of Izmir province in the country’s west. It is Turkey’s first DRES, an acronym for a licensed wind-storage system, of 10 MWh or more. The companies pointed out it is also the first hybrid power project of its kind to receive incentives.

Polat Enerji’s BESS consists of four 3.8 MWh units manufactured by Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd (CATL) from China. In the second phase, the capacity will reach 28.2 MWh, according to the update.

In the second phase, BESS capacity will reach 28.2 MWh

Electricity from wind turbines will be stored and delivered to the grid to cover production imbalances and stabilize the system. The companies signed the agreement about the battery project in January.

Ege was built in 2015. The wind park consists of eight turbines, of which the last two were connected almost two years ago. It has 15.2 MW in nameplate capacity and a 13 MW connection.

Earlier this month, Polat Enerji won a 160 MW project at a wind power auction under Turkey’s YEKA support mechanism. The company is a joint venture of Polat Holding and İş Enerji Yatirimlari, each holding 50%. The latter is a subsidiary of Türkiye İş Bankası, the largest private sector bank in Turkey.

The ministry said today that the country’s wind power capacity reached 14.5 GW in November, out of 121.8 GW in total. There was 24.7 GW of solar power in operation.