With large battery storage systems playing an increasingly important role in the expansion of renewable energies, Axpo and energieUri AG plan to build their own facilities at the same industrial location in Gurtnellen, Switzerland. Work is due to begin in September 2025.
Axpo and energieUri will construct two large battery storage systems (BESS) with a capacity of 50 MW and 8.6 MW respectively, both in the Platti industrial district of Gurtnellen in Uri canton. The systems will be supplied by Fluence, a leading BESS provider, while Axpo subsidiary CKW will install and connect them to the power grid, working in cooperation with energieUri.
From initial concept to the construction phase, Axpo and energieUri AG have co-operated closely on the project. Commissioning is planned for 1H26.
Axpo’s Head of Batteries and Hybrid Systems, Frank Amend, said: “With this initiative, we are making an important contribution to the flexible provision of electricity and the security of energy supply in Switzerland.”
Fluence Energy GmbH Managing Director, Markus Meyer, commented: “We’re delighted to be making a key contribution to this pioneering storage project. The two plants impressively demonstrate how large-scale battery storage can strengthen security of supply and flexibility in the Swiss energy system.”
The 50 MW Gurtnellen plant will be capable of storing up to 100 MWh of energy. EnergieUri will also build an 8.6 MW storage facility on the same site as Axpo to meet the needs of the canton Uri. Both facilities are located in the Platti industrial area in Gurtnellen.
Amend added: “The importance of large storage capacities has grown significantly as the energy transition progresses. We will continue to expand our storage activities and over the next three years aim to achieve a total installed capacity of several hundred MW, with projects planned in Germany, Spain, France, Italy, and Poland, as well as Switzerland.”
energieUri CEO, Werner Jauch, noted: “In addition to expanding hydropower and battery storage, energieUri is currently working with partners to build a wind farm, the first alpine photovoltaic plant in Central Switzerland and, together with Axpo, a hydrogen production plant. Innovative projects like these are needed to successfully master the numerous challenges of increasingly volatile and dynamic energy production.”
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