Neoen to build its biggest battery to shift energy to evening peak in nuclear-dominated Ontario

French renewable energy company Neoen has announced plans to build its biggest battery project to date – a 400 MW, four hour battery (1600 MWh) to shift excess energy to the evening peak in the nuclear dominated Canadian state of Ontario.

Neoen has created a new subsidiary company called Shift Solar to build the Grey Owl battery project, which was one of 10 storage projects that won capacity contracts offered by Ontario’s Independent Electricity Systems Operator (IESO) in the largest battery storage procurement in Canada’s history.

The Grey Owl Storage project will boast a total nameplate capacity of 400MW/1,600MWh, of which 380MW and four hours of storage (1520 MWH) has been contracted to the IESO over a period of 20 years, providing grid stability and reliability services.

“The battery will be able to charge during off-peak hours and redistribute the stored energy back into the grid at peak times, when it is needed most,” Neoen said in a statement.

Ontario’s grid is dominated by nuclear power, which provides 53 per cent of its electricity. Solar provides less than one per cent of grid production and wind less than 8.2 per cent, underlying the fact that even grids dominated by less flexible “baseload” power need, or want, battery storage to shift excess power to where it is needed most.

The IESO has been seeking up to 2,500MW of energy storage capacity (with multiple hours of storage) as well as some gas capacity to help meet projected shortfalls in electricity supply, made worse by the multi-year outages required to refurbish most of the state’s ageing nuclear plants.

In the tender results announced late last week, a total of 1.8 GW of battery storate capacity (it did not provide storage duration) was awarded, at an average price of $C672 per megawatt per day. A further 790 MW of storage capacity was awarded last year.

The Grey Owl battery will be one of the biggest in the world, and the second largest battery in Canada.

Neoen says it will be the largest in its own portfolio, bigger than the recently announced Collie 2 battery in Western Australia, which will be sized at 341 MW and 1363 MWh, and will have a similar role to the Grey Owl battery, except the W.A. battery will time shift excess solar rather than excess nuclear.

It should be noted, however,. that the Collie facility also included the 219 MW/877 MWh Collie Battery 1 facility that – combined with stage 2 – will create an overall battery project of 560 MW and 2240 MWh.

Neoen has also built the Hornsdale Power Reserve, the Victoria Big Battery (still the country’s largest operating battery), the Bulgana battery, and is building big batteries at Western Downs, Blyth and in the ACT.

“We are thrilled to have been awarded this major contract with the IESO,” said Emmanuel Pujol, CEO of Neoen Americas.

“The province’s energy and capacity needs are massive, and Neoen’s ambition is to be a key contributor, by developing a broad portfolio of renewable energy and storage projects for the years to come.”This is an important step for Neoen in Ontario and Canada, where we are accelerating our development.”

The Grey Owl project will be built in Arran-Elderslie, Bruce County, in Ontario, and is expected to begin operations in early 2028.