More solar power projects paired with energy storage are taking shape across Europe, with a variety of investors supporting assets in the UK and Italy, among other countries. Pumped storage projects also are receiving growing interest, with a major Ukrainian engineering group joining the International Hydropower Association (IHA) and now sharing its engineering expertise with that agency. Renewable energy got a recent boost in Portugal, where the government unveiled a National Energy Storage Strategy that says long-duration energy storage is now essential infrastructure for renewable energy–based power systems. Portugal's plan includes an expansion of pumped storage generation capacity within the country, and also supports competitive auctions, tenders for future projects, and reforms to the country's energy permitting process. Portugal has a goal of at least 5 GW of generation capacity from pumped storage by 2040.
1. The Dniester PSP is a major hydropower and pumped storage project in Ukraine. Courtesy: Ukrhydroenergo (used with permission)
The IHA in July said Ukraine's Ukrhydroproject (UHP) has become a member of the group and will provide support to the global hydropower community. UHP, founded in 1927 and headquartered in Kharkiv, Ukraine, is considered one of Ukraine's leading engineering companies, specializing in hydropower and water management construction. The company for nearly 100 years has provided design and engineering services for hydropower plants, pumped storage facilities, and major water infrastructure projects in Ukraine and around the world. The IHA said UHP "has been the general designer behind several of Ukraine's most important hydropower developments, including the cascades of hydropower and pumped storage plants on the Dnipro and Dniester Rivers." UHP led development of the Dniester pumped storage plant (Figure 1), one of Europe's largest pumped storage facilities, being built by Ukrhydroenergo. The company said the Dniester PSP, as it is known, will feature seven hydroelectric units with a total capacity of 2,268 MW in generator mode, and 2,947 MW in pumped storage mode. The UHP also has supported projects in Vietnam, Mexico, Venezuela, Laos, Ethiopia, Poland, and elsewhere.
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2. The Larks Green solar installation is part of a 190-MW solar and energy storage installation in the UK. Courtesy: Enso Energy (used with permission)