BW ESS and ACL Energy have significantly expanded their joint project development pipeline for utility-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) in Italy, increasing their total planned capacity to 2.9GW.
The partnership, first established in February 2024 with three initial projects totaling 400MW, now includes 11 additional sites with a combined capacity of 2.5GW. This brings the total pipeline to 14 schemes, spanning Italy's North and South electricity zones.
All projects have secured both land and grid access and are in the process of obtaining permits. Seven of the schemes, totaling over 1GW, are under review by the Ministry of Environment and Energy Security. The Northern projects are geared towards participation in the capacity market, while the Southern sites are expected to compete in the Mechanism for Procuring Electricity Storage Capacity.
The expansion aligns with Italy's growing renewable energy sector, driven by the need for energy storage to support the grid. Italian grid operator Terna reported the addition of 2.9GW of wind and solar in 2022, followed by 5.7GW in 2023, and 5.4GW in the first nine months of 2024.
Roberto Jiménez, Executive Director of BW ESS, stated, “Deepening our partnership with ACL Energy allows us to significantly scale our development activities in Italy. We believe our shared pipeline represents one of the largest among non-utility players in the Italian BESS market.”
Nicola Locascio, Managing Partner at ACL Energy, emphasized the strategic importance of the collaboration. “This partnership reinforces ACL Energy's ambition to lead in Italy's rapidly growing energy storage sector,” he said.
