The ecological transition pursues clear targets for electrical energy storage, reflected in Spain's Energy Storage Strategy. According to this document, energy storage capacity will need to increase from 8.3 GW in 2021 to 20 GW by 2030.

That's why companies like Hybrid Energy Storage Solutions (HESStec) aim to promote effective integration of energy storage at various levels within the electrical grid, including generation, transmission, and distribution, providing the grid with sufficient management capacity and stability to accommodate an optimal mass integration of renewable energies.

Elewit, through its corporate venture capital, placed its trust in HESStec. Since then, both companies have collaborated on three projects, of which the synchronous grid-forming hybrid storage project (ViSync) is still ongoing.

Synchronous Grid-Forming Hybrid Storage Project (ViSync)

ViSync is a disruptive project that arises from the collaboration of Red Eléctrica with HESStec, CEN Solutions, S2 Grupo, and CERE, paving the way for a new way of regulating and operating grids more dynamically, adding stability and allowing greater penetration of renewable energies. Additionally, it is worth noting that the ViSync project is subsidized by the ERHA PERTE, the state-run strategic project focused on the recovery and economic transformation of renewable energies, renewable hydrogen, and storage.

As a result of the positive results of the RES+ and INERTIA+ projects, the ViSync project aims to develop and validate on a real scale a hybrid storage system that combines lithium-ion batteries and ultracapacitors. It will be managed through a specific control system that allows it to operate in synchronous grid-forming mode.

In the project, HESStec deployed a hybrid storage system, providing both the 18.8 MVA power stage with grid-forming capacity and a hybrid solution based on ultracapacitors with a peak power of 16 MW and 80 MWs. This collaboration will bring to life one of the first systems worldwide to operate as a virtual synchronous compensator.

Elewit's investment in HESStec has promoted its collaboration with Red Eléctrica, revolutionizing energy storage and bringing us closer to a more sustainable energy future. The main joint challenge in the medium and long term is to expand into international markets, providing global solutions that leverage combined capabilities and knowledge.