Neoen has announced new battery storage projects with 348 MW/896 MWh capacity in France and Japan
It has roped in Nidec ASI to provide battery packs from its local French facility
The Japan project will see Neoen collaborate with France’s Equans and Japan’s Toho
Neoen, the French renewable energy company, plans to build a 248 MW/496 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in France, calling it the ‘largest’ battery installation in the country. It has also announced its 1st large-scale battery storage project in Japan, which will also be one of the country’s largest batteries.
The French project will also be the first battery project to connect to RTE’s 400 kV high voltage transmission network, says the company. It is located in Vernou-la-Celle-sur-Seine, near the Chesnoy substation that serves the Paris metropolitan area. It will support the electricity network of the Île-de-France area.
With 200 MW capacity at the point of connection, the battery project will provide frequency and voltage regulation services to the French grid, easing congestion in the Île-de-France area.
Additional environmental studies will be conducted, following which construction will begin in the summer of 2026, with commercial operations beginning in 2028.
Neoen says this is another large-scale storage project for the company in France. It is also building the 92 MW/183 MWh Breizh Big Battery Project in Pleyber-Christ in Brittany.
Japanese battery storage manufacturer Nidec ASI is on board to provide the battery packs, which it will assemble at its newly operational local production facility in La Fouillouse near Saint-Étienne. It will also provide asset maintenance services for 20 years. The company is among the top BESS suppliers globally, according to Wood Mackenzie (see Tesla Maintained BESS Lead In 2024; Chinese Firms Gain Ground).
This is the 12th battery project partnership for the duo, representing over 1 GWh capacity. It includes the 10 MW/41 MWh Willstätt Battery Project in Germany, announced in February this year.
In Japan, Neoen is set to build the 100 MW/400 MWh Ako Battery Project located in Hyogo Prefecture’s Kansai region, in collaboration with its compatriot Equans of France, and Japan’s Toho.
Announced during French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to the country, the Ako project will sport a 4-hour-long duration battery to be grid-connected to Kansai Electric Power Company (KEPCO). The project is targeted to start commercial operations in 2028.
With these projects, Neoen says its storage portfolio spans Australia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, and El Salvador with 2.8 GW/8.1 GWh of batteries in operation or under construction. This includes 2.3 GW/7.2 GWh of projects in operation or under construction in Australia.
