At Peleman Industries in Puurs in 2018, the first large-scale storage system in Belgium was installed on an industrial site that contributes to balancing out the electricity grid. Green energy provider Eneco installed Alfen's energy storage system, named TheBattery, to offer grid stabilization services. In addition, the battery storage system enables Peleman Industries to use the renewable energy generated by their own windmills for own consumption as much as possible.

TheBattery

The energy storage system was installed on the site of Peleman Industries, developer of solutions for printed presentations and photographs, where also two wind turbines are located. The Alfen battery storage has a capacity of 2MW/2MWh, enough to provide 200 families with electricity for one day. It was the first time a battery was deployed commercially to balance out the frequency of the electricity grid in Belgium and keep it at 50Hz. The electricity generated is therefore not only at the company's disposal, but also available for the electricity grid.

When all Europeans collectively consume more electricity than is produced, the battery can come to the rescue and replenish the electricity deficiency. When the production is higher than the consumption, the battery recharges. If the frequency on the electricity grid is too low, it can cause the digital clocks to desynchronize, which occurred in 2018 after an outage of the electricity grid in Southeast Europe.

Always usable green energy 

When there are no necessary urgent interferences to the electricity grid, the battery saves and stores the energy generated by the wind turbines at the Peleman sites. The battery can supply electricity, if the company so requires. By placing the battery on the industrial site and thus "behind the meter", it reduces the pressure on the electricity grid which consequently leads to lower investments in the grid.