Toshiba Group member and Landis+Gyr, a provider of smart metering, has won a major order to supply a MW-class battery energy storage system (BESS) to Helen Ltd., a major energy utility operating in the capital of Finland. The BESS, the first in any Nordic country, will start operation in Helsinki in spring 2016.

Landis+Gyr will supply a 1.2MW - 0.6MWh SCiB™ lithium-ion BESS for installation on a site next to the Suvilahti solar power plant, Finland’s largest, built as a part of a smart community project that Helen is developing in Helsinki’s Kalasatama District.

BESS support the integration of renewable power sources into the electricity grid. Output from renewables such as solar and wind power is affected by weather conditions. BESS compensate for this by storing and conditioning power from renewables and delivering it for periods ranging from a few seconds to several minutes, to iron out frequency fluctuations. Toshiba has developed technologies and products for all parts of the process.

At the heart of the BESS is Toshiba’s SCiB™, a highly innovative lithium-ion secondary battery distinguished by its long-life and excellent performance, including strong resistance to and consistent good performance in low temperatures. The SCiB™ has a long lifetime of over 10,000 charge-discharge cycles, and operates with a high level of reliability and safety, including excellent resistance to external shock.

Toshiba is establishing a strong presence and track record in supplying BESS in Europe. Recent deliveries include a system for the University of Sheffield in the U.K. and to Terna Storage S.r.l., a subsidiary of Italian power distributor Terna S.p.A. As with those BESS, delivery and system integration of the system supplied to Helen will be carried out by Toshiba T&D Europe S.p.A., based in Genoa, Italy.

This Finnish product also underlines the synergies that Toshiba Group is building in its Smart Community related businesses. Landis+Gyr has a global sales network covering more than 30 countries, including Finland, allowing Toshiba to make proposals across different business lines.

Interest in BESS for frequency adjustment is coming to the fore, and demand is growing fast. Toshiba will continue to build on its capabilities and respond by continuing to refine BESS that can react quickly to frequency fluctuations with frequent fine adjustments. Toshiba Group will also promote the business on the global level.