Vattenfall has signed a tolling agreement with Royal Vopak for 100 MW / 400 MWh of battery storage capacity at a planned project near Meeden in the province of Groningen, the Netherlands. The whole facility, which Vopak will develop and operate, has a total capacity of 150 MW and a storage duration of four hours. Commercial operations are expected to start in the second quarter of 2028.
What Vattenfall gets
The contract gives Vattenfall access to two-thirds of the project's power capacity. Vattenfall says the capacity will help it balance swings in electricity supply and demand. The company also says the deal brings it closer to its goal of contracting at least 1.5 GW of battery capacity across its core markets.
Erik Suichies, Head of Wholesale Energy at Vattenfall, said the company is pleased to partner with Vopak and support the development of large-scale energy storage in the Netherlands.
Vopak's side
Vopak describes the agreement as a milestone as it continues to expand into electrical energy storage. Jarno Veldhoven, Vice President Business Development Battery Energy Storage Solutions at Vopak, said the company sees growing demand for battery energy storage as renewables take a larger share of the energy mix. He said Vopak aims to provide reliable and affordable battery systems and is glad to have Vattenfall as a long-term partner.
Both companies have long-standing positions in the Dutch energy sector. They say that by combining large-scale storage infrastructure with market expertise and flexibility optimization, they aim to support a more resilient and future-proof electricity system.
Why batteries are being contracted
Vattenfall's stated reasoning is that flexibility becomes more important as wind and solar supply a larger share of the electricity system. A battery can absorb surplus renewable electricity when production is high and return power to the grid when demand rises or renewable generation falls.
