RWE Begins Construction Of 400 MW, 800 MWh Battery Storage Facility In Lingen, Lower Saxony, To Operate By 2028

On a former industrial site in Lingen, Lower Saxony, where acrylic fibres were produced until 2021, RWE is constructing the largest battery storage facility in the region. The 400-megawatt (MW) system is being built on the former premises of Dralon GmbH, northeast of the Emsland gas-fired power plant. The facility is designed to deliver its maximum output for at least two hours, corresponding to a storage capacity of at least 800 megawatt hours (MWh). RWE has confirmed its investment in the project, with operations expected to begin in 2028.

Nikolaus Valerius, CEO of RWE Generation SE, explained the importance of the project in the context of renewable energy expansion. “With the growth of renewable energies, the demand for firm capacity is increasing. New gas-fired power plants and battery storage facilities complement each other perfectly: while gas plants provide energy when wind and solar are insufficient for hours or days, battery facilities bridge short-term gaps or peak-load periods. Our new battery storage facility in Lingen will absorb or feed power within milliseconds, depending on demand, contributing to grid stability and reliable electricity prices.”

The Lingen battery facility will also provide balancing energy to stabilize the electricity grid and is equipped with technology to offer new grid services, such as instantaneous reserve (inertia). The park will contain more than 200 lithium-ion battery units, over 100 inverters, more than 50 medium-voltage transformers, two high-voltage transformers, and two switch panels. It will connect to the electricity grid via the nearby Hilgenberg substation, currently being built by Amprion less than 50 meters from the site.

Before construction can begin, an 8.5-hectare area in the southern part of the industrial zone will be prepared. All necessary permits have been obtained, and work is scheduled to start on 2 February. RWE has been actively developing battery storage as part of its energy transition strategy in the USA, Europe, and Australia. By the end of the third quarter of 2025, the company operated battery storage systems with a total capacity of around 1.2 gigawatts (GW), with more than 2.7 gigawatts under construction. Expanding battery storage capacity worldwide remains a core component of RWE’s growth strategy.