Grenergy has inaugurated the Elena battery plant in María Elena, northern Chile, which has a commissioned storage capacity of 3.5GW-hours (GWh).
The inauguration ceremony was led by President of the Republic José Antonio Kast Rist.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
Senior officials in attendance included Minister of Energy Ximena Rincón; Minister of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation Ximena Lincolao; Spanish Ambassador to Chile Laura Oroz; and María Elena Mayor Viviana Cuello.
The Elena facility is designed to reach 7GWh by 2028, based on the company’s expansion plans. It comprises 624 containers and 6,240 batteries.
According to Grenergy, the construction process involved more than 400 workers and included educational and social programmes in the María Elena community.
Elena forms the initial phase of a broader renewable energy platform known as Oasis de Atacama, which integrates 2.5GW of solar generation capacity and 14.1GWh of battery storage.
The hybridisation model developed with Oasis de Atacama is being replicated in central Chile through the Oasis Central platform, which is projected to provide 1.4GW of solar capacity and 5.1GWh of storage, and is also being extended to projects in Spain.
Altogether, the two Oasis platforms are expected to deliver 5GW of solar energy and 22GWh of storage.
Grenergy has been present in Chile since 2012 and states that the country is now its principal market.
The company has invested $2.8bn (€2.42bn) in Chile to date and aims to increase its total investment to $4.8bn within two years.
The Elena project is intended to support the development of what Grenergy describes as the largest clean energy generation hub in northern Chile.
This hub is expected to deliver 2.1GW of solar power and 14GWh of storage, with the capability to supply energy on a 24/7 basis, address peak demand and allow for greater integration of renewables into the grid.
Grenergy CEO David Ruiz de Andrés said: “With Elena, the largest battery plant in the Americas, we are promoting a hub in the north based on clean and competitive energy for the industry and for all Chileans.”
Grenergy stated that the Elena battery site will facilitate continued electrification, support decarbonisation efforts in sectors such as mining and transport, and may help attract further digital infrastructure investment.
