Japanese battery manufacturer NGK Insulators has completed the installation and testing of NAS batteries for MVM Balance, a subsidiary of Hungarian state-owned energy company MVM Group. A handover ceremony was recently held at MVM Balance’s power station in Litér, Hungary. NGK Insulators specialises in the manufacture of NAS batteries, which are made from sodium and sulfur. These batteries are used in various applications including stabilising renewable energy sources, balancing electric power demand and supply, and as emergency power sources.
According to State Secretary of the Ministry for Energy of Hungary, Attila Steiner, the batteries will enable a rapid and flexible response to electric power demand, contributing to increased energy stability and security. Steiner says the Ministry of Energy aims to secure one gigawatt of electric energy storage capacity within Hungary by 2030, and that this project represents a further step toward achieving this goal, while also contributing to energy autonomy, sustainability, and technology reform.
The installed NAS batteries will be used in a grid storage battery demonstration project, storing energy during times of surplus and discharging it when there is a shortage. NGK says it will examine the provision of adjustment capacity to the ancillary service market, trading energy supply to eliminate gaps in supply and demand. MVM Group plans to examine the performance standard for grid storage batteries to be introduced in the future, as part of a full-scale advancement of storage battery installation to adjust renewable energy supply and demand.
Hungary has legislated the achievement of carbon neutrality by 2050, with a goal of converting 90% of its generated power to low-carbon sources by 2030. With solar power accounting for over 25% of Hungary’s domestic electricity supply, and limitations on pumped storage hydroelectricity stations due to the country’s flat terrain, demand for high-capacity storage batteries is increasing. NAS batteries have been installed at over 300 locations globally, originally developed as an alternative to pumped hydroelectric storage in urban areas.
