Product
The World's Largest NAS Battery Installation Commences Operation Short Installation Period Achieved through Containerized, Compact Format
March 03, 2016
NGK INSULATORS, LTD. (President Taku Oshima; Headquarters: Nagoya, Japan) announced today that the world’s largest storage battery facility, a NAS battery energy storage system, has commenced operation. The system was ordered by Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and delivered to the Buzen Substation of Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc.
The NAS batteries delivered to the Buzen Substation have a total output of 50,000 kW and a storage capacity of 300,000 kWh (enough to supply electricity to approximately 30,000 households for one day). The storage system consists of 252 of NGK’s recently developed containerized NAS battery units (portable 20 foot containers housing NAS batteries and control devices, each with a total output of 200 kW).
Production of the system began in June 2015 when the order was received. Installation of the NAS battery units began in mid-August 2015 and was completed at the beginning of January 2016. The new containerized format requires only about one third of the installation time compared with the conventional format. NGK used this advantage to construct the world’s largest storage battery facility in about six months.
NAS batteries are also characterized by high energy density compared to other stationary storage batteries, and are very compact and space efficient. At the Buzen Substation, NAS batteries with a storage capacity of 300,000 kWh are installed on a site measuring approximately 14,000 m2. In terms of storage capacity per unit area, this is substantially denser than any other large-scale storage battery system for use with the electric power grid.
The use of renewable energy, primarily solar power generators, is spreading rapidly within Kyushu Electric’s power grid. As a result, the power company is promoting initiatives to smoothly connect to sources of renewable energy to ensure a stable supply of power. NAS batteries are a component of one of these initiatives—Kyushu Electric’s Demonstration Project for Improving the Balance of Power Supply and Demand with a Large-Capacity Storage Battery System*. In this project, Kyushu Electric Power is connecting a NAS battery system to a power grid to demonstrate its application to improve the balance of supply and demand by utilizing its storage capacity, equivalent to a pumped hydroelectric power generation facility, and for controlling grid voltage.
* The New Energy Promotion Council’s “Grant for the Emergency Response to Retaining Renewable Energy Connections (Demonstration Project for Improving the Balance of Power Supply and Demand with a Large-Capacity Storage Battery System)”
Since their commercialization in 2002, NGK has delivered NAS battery systems with a total output of 530,000 kW and storage capacity of 3,700,000 kWh at approximately 200 sites around the world. The systems have also been installed in the power grid of Italy and the United Arab Emirates and are being used to adjust the balance of supply and demand for electricity.
NGK will continue responding to the growing global demand for large-capacity storage batteries and thereby contribute to the wider introduction of renewable energy.
Overview of the NAS Battery System that Commenced Operation
Installation site:
Buzen Substation of Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc.
(on site of the Buzen Power Station in Buzen City, Fukuoka Prefecture)
Power output:
50,000 kW
Storage capacity:
300,000 kWh
Units installed:
252 containerized units
Site area:
Approx. 14,000 m2
Operation start:
March 3, 2016
