Energy storage have an important role to play in the energy transformation and for the proper functioning of the National Power System and, more broadly, the energy system in Poland. They provide stability and flexibility, facilitating energy management in response to the changing needs of consumers and the irregular operation of its renewable sources; photovoltaic installations and wind turbines are weather dependent.
Energy storage are used at various levels of the energy system, from installations of strategic importance on a national scale to those that can be used directly by prosumers, i.e. consumers producing energy. In the latter case, these may even be electric cars (“vehicle to grid” solution).
Investments throughout the country
The largest player on the energy market in the country, PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna is currently implementing a project to build an energy storage facility in Żarnowiec, which will be the largest installation of this type in Europe. It is to operate with a power of approximately 263 MW and achieve a capacity of at least 900 MWh. According to the investor, it will enable the provision of regulatory system services to the transmission network operator, as well as the balancing of local onshore wind farms and future PGE farms in the Baltic Sea. According to the plan, it is to be put into operation in 2026.
By 2029 PGE plans to launch a warehouse in Gryfino with a capacity of 400 MW. It is also carrying out a tender procedure for the construction of 26 distributed energy storage facilities with a capacity of 2 MW to 10 MW. Their total power will be 107 MW and capacity 214 MWh. The warehouses will be located in the Masovian, Podkarpackie, Łódź, Lublin and Podlaskie voivodeships and will support the existing installations in Rzepedź in Podkarpacie (2.1 MW) and Góra Żar (0.5 MW).
As they inform representatives of PGEinvestments in storage are a response to the need of local distribution systems to be able to store surplus renewable energy and then use it when demand exceeds its supply. This not only affects the stable operation of the network, but also contributes to the optimization of prices on the energy market.
PGE plans to have it by the end of this decade storage facilities with a total capacity of 800 MW. According to the company’s information, the technology in which they will be implemented is open. Various energy storage technologies are still being tested around the world in search of new, effective solutions other than batteries.
PGE also forecasts increasing importance of thermal energy storageproviding similar benefits as in the case of electricity, thus allowing for better use of renewable sources and stabilization of the system.
Heat storage it can also be used to optimize the operation of a combined heat and power plant, as will be the case in the Czechnica-2 project implemented by PGE in Siechnice near Wrocław, where a heat storage facility with a capacity of 13 million liters of water and a battery thermal capacity of almost 700 MWh is being built. This corresponds to the daily demand of the heating network operated by the CHP plant in the summer. Such a storage facility will balance the operation of the heat and power plant, reduce the amount of fuel burned and emissions, and improve efficiency.
Great and effective
Thinking about transformation and the future of energythe role and potential of pumped storage power plants in energy storage must also be appreciated. They are used around the world as the most effective and reliable stores of huge amounts of energy. They take advantage of the natural terrain and are activated during periods of increased electricity demand, stabilizing the system.
In this type of power plants electricity is converted into the potential gravitational energy of water (it is pumped from the lower reservoir to the upper one) and the reverse transformation occurs, allowing electricity to be recovered. The first process is carried out when electricity production is greater than demand.
Pumped storage power plants by their nature, they can store very large amounts of energy for long periods of time. They achieve full power in a few minutes, which allows you to quickly respond to changes in energy demand. They can, for example, very quickly replace a disabled power unit or respond in the event of a failure or disruption in the operation of the transmission network.
Additionally, they perform a function retention tanksprotecting against flooding.
90 percent shareWhen it comes to pumped-storage power plants in Poland, PGE has. This gives it a leading position in energy storage, which includes the following power plants: Żarnowiec (716 MW), Porąbka-Żar (500 MW), Solina (200 MW) and Dychów (90 MW). They are used more and more intensively due to the increase in renewable energy sources in Poland. In the years 2018–2023, the operating time of pumped storage power plants in the PGE Group increased by 8,348 hours (28%) and the number of starts by 7,623 (52%). As PGE points out, due to the development of weather-dependent renewable energy sources, existing pumped storage power plants, i.e. the only large-scale energy storage facilities in the National Power System, are reaching the limit of their maximum use. Currently, the company, together with the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management, is preparing to implement the “Młoty” project with a capacity of 1,050 MW. Its full cycle efficiency will be approximately 80% and its service life will be up to 80 years. Battery storage facilities are currently characterized by an efficiency of 84-90%. and service life up to 15 years. Expenditures on the operation of pumped-storage power plants remain lower, and they are considered the most mature electricity storage technology.
The “Młoty” project, located in Bystrzyca Kłodzka, is at the stage of obtaining an environmental decision. In September, PGE received the scope of the environmental impact report. The next step is to submit a report and obtain an environmental decision, which determines the further schedule of the project.
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