RWE has taken a final investment decision to develop a 400 MW/1,100 MWh large-scale battery energy storage system at its Moerdijk power station site in the Netherlands, strengthening grid flexibility and supporting the integration of renewable energy into the Dutch electricity system.
The project will comprise 208 containers equipped with lithium-ion batteries and will be capable of delivering its full output for almost three hours. Construction is expected to begin shortly, with commissioning scheduled for the second quarter of 2028.
According to RWE, the battery will be one of the largest and most powerful storage systems in the Netherlands. The company said the facility will be capable of covering the evening peak electricity demand of approximately 500,000 households for nearly three hours while also absorbing surplus electricity from the grid within seconds.
Nikolaus Valerius, CEO of RWE Generation SE, said the project represents an important milestone for electricity supply reliability and grid congestion relief in Noord-Brabant. He highlighted the growing role of battery storage in creating a resilient electricity system capable of accommodating increasing volumes of renewable generation.
The battery will utilise existing infrastructure at the Moerdijk site and connect to the national electricity grid through the existing substation at RWE’s power plant.
Under capacity steering agreements with Dutch transmission system operator TenneT, the facility will be dispatched to help relieve grid congestion in the Noord-Brabant region. Its location near the Moerdijk-Noord high-voltage substation is expected to help alleviate regional grid bottlenecks and improve the utilisation of existing network capacity.
TenneT, together with regional grid operator Enexis, will assess how the additional flexibility could create grid capacity for electricity consumers currently on waiting lists. The development is also expected to be considered as part of the region’s congestion management review.
In addition to congestion management, the battery will be designed to provide advanced grid services, including instantaneous reserve, or inertia.
The Moerdijk site already hosts a 7.5 MW/11 MWh synthetic inertia battery connected to the continental European electricity grid. RWE also operates a 35 MW/41 MWh battery storage facility at its Eemshaven power plant in the Netherlands.
The new Moerdijk battery will also complement RWE and TotalEnergies’ 795 MW OranjeWind offshore wind project off the Dutch coast. The offshore project is designed to combine renewable generation with flexible energy technologies that can better align electricity production with demand.
The Moerdijk battery will be able to store electricity during periods of high wind generation and return it to the grid when required. Alongside technologies including electrolysers, e-boilers and smart charging, the storage facility is expected to support the integration of OranjeWind generation into the Dutch electricity system.
RWE is expanding its battery storage portfolio across Europe, the United States and Australia. The company currently operates battery storage systems with a combined capacity of approximately 1.7 GW globally, while another 3 GW is under construction.
The company plans to continue expanding its global battery storage capacity as part of its broader renewable energy and energy transition strategy.
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