An energy storage system will soon be installed at the largest solar power plant in Croatia, which has a capacity of 3.5 MW, said Željko Tukša, President of the Managing Board of Končar – Power Plant and Electric Traction Engineering (Končar KET).

The solar power plant on the island of Vis, managed by power utility Hrvatska Elektroprivreda (HEP), was inaugurated in September 2020. The project included a plan for a 1 MW battery storage facility.

Željko Tukša added in an interview with Radio Poslovni FM that the solar power plant is a product of Croatia’s Končar KET and that HEP bought it after it was commissioned. About 11,000 solar panels, which Končar KET does not produce, were installed on very demanding karst terrain.

The battery has been contracted, and soon it will be delivered and put into operation

Tukša said storage was planned for the second phase of the construction of the solar power plant on Vis island. In the meantime, the battery has been contracted, it is currently in the design phase, and it will soon be delivered and put into operation, he said, and added that the system would entirely be produced by Končar KET.

The energy storage system will be entirely produced by Končar KET

The main purpose of the battery is the accumulation of electricity when production is large and delivery when production is small. Storage will be used at the level of the distribution grid because with the new connections of renewable power plants it is necessary to regulate the grid on this level as well.

The capacity of the solar power plant is 3.5 MW, and the average annual demand on Vis is below 2 MW, or under 1 MW in the winter, Tukša said.

In the winter, if the solar power plant’s capacity utilization is at 2 MW, electricity is transmitted to Hvar island because there is currently no battery storage in Vis. However, the situation will change soon.