ACL Energy-led JV to develop 3 battery storage projects totaling 395MW in Italy

Milan-based battery storage developer ACL Energy has recently announced a joint venture partnership with large-scale operator BW ESS and Penso Power, a London-based developer of grid-scale battery storage assets, for developing storage projects in Italy. 

This joint venture marks the entry of BW ESS and Penso Power into the Italian ES market, which is expected to be one of the most active markets in Europe for battery energy storage. 

The trio will become joint shareholders and fund three development stage projects totaling 395 MW capacity in the country. This includes 111 MW project in Lombardia and a 97 MW project in Puglia, whose proposals are already submitted to the Italian Ministry of Energy for approval. 

The third project in Piemonte with a capacity of 187MW will be submitted for approval later this year, according to the partnering companies. 

“We are proud to enter into this partnership with international players with such successful track record in the energy storage industry such as Penso Power and BW ESS. This Joint Venture is a fundamental pillar in our medium-long term strategy and consolidates ACL’s ambition of becoming a leading player in the rapidly expanding energy storage business in Italy", said Nicola Locascio, Managing Partner of ACL Energy. 

Roberto Jimenez, Executive Director of BW ESS commented on the JV, "This deal is another example of BW's commitment to the energy transition and sustainable infrastructure. We look forward to working with Penso and ACL to deliver these three projects and leverage the best practices we have seen from similar investments in other markets."

"Italy is a priority market for us and the combination of skillsets that this joint venture brings together positions us to take a leading role in Italian energy storage", said Richard Thwaites, CEO of Penso Power. The company already has operational storage assets in the UK and Australia. 

"We have been working closely with BW ESS for several years and have benefitted from having them as a shareholder and project partner. We regard the ACL team very highly and are delighted to formalise our partnership with them", Thwaites added. 

Italy is one of the key markets for grid-scale energy storage in Europe this year, with some 2.6GW/ 8.9GWh of projects expected to come online, as per LCP Delta's estimates. 

The country's transmission system operator Terna has estimated that Italy will need around 27 GW of energy storage capacity by 2033, so as to add a planned 120 GW+ of renewable energy generation to its national grid.