FRV acquires majority stake in largest battery project in Greece

Fotowatio Renewable Ventures took over a portfolio of 600 MW of battery energy storage systems under development in Greece.

Greek company Wootis said it sold 51% of its subsidiary that owns eight licensed battery electricity storage system (BESS) projects to Fotowatio Renewable Ventures or FRV. The buyer, part of the Abdul Latif Jameel Energy group, is headquartered in Spain.

The portfolio has a planned operating power of 600 MW in total. FRV said the locations are spread across Greece. The transaction is the biggest so far in the battery sector in the country and for the biggest project so far.

The battery systems in the pipeline should come online between the third quarter of next year and mid-2024

Most of the projects have environmental permits and requests submitted for the connection to the grid, according to Wootis, which is active in the areas of asset management and integrated energy services for wind and solar power plants. The battery systems should come online between the third quarter of next year and mid-2024, FRV revealed.

“FRV’s landing in Greece with Wootis is a good example of the international expansion plans of the company, which has built more than 50 renewable energy production plants to date in countries such as Spain, Australia, Mexico, Uruguay, Chile, Italy, India, the United States, the United Kingdom and Jordan, and is preparing new projects that will soon be launched in other markets,” Managing Director of FRV Europe Andrea Fontana asserted.

The two firms aim to jointly develop projects for 300 MW in total operating power

Wootis said the collaboration is aimed at the development of additional electricity storage projects for 300 MW in total operating power.

Abdul Latif Jameel Energy is based in Saudi Arabia and its international headquarters is in Dubai.

Greece plans to hold its first tender for investment and operating support to battery storage projects in the first quarter, for 450 MW, and the second one is envisaged to be conducted by mid-year, for the same capacity.

There is currently 1.52 GW in total in projects under development that could participate, Energypress reported. The selected developers will apparently have to get them online by the end of 2025.