Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS)
InterConnect Malta has been entrusted the responsibility to implement Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) to be connected to the Maltese National electric grid network.
BESS presents an important potential contribution for Malta to achieve its EU decarbonisation commitments and features in the Malta Low Carbon Development Strategy, Malta’s 2030 National Energy and Climate Plan and Malta’s Energy Shift Document
Procurement Procedures
Commercial & Regulatory
Project Benefits
- Store energy generated by renewables during hours of maximum delivery and use it during peaks, thus flattening the variance between day and evening on conventional generation plant output. This in turn is expected to increase the efficiency of the conventional plant in operation and thus reduce its emissions. Excess RES generated will be stored and then used to displace the starting up/ramping up of CO2 emitting plants.
- Reduce the effect of the variability and intermittency caused by renewables, in periods of variable cloud cover, and thus permit the operation of conventional plant in a more stable manner, with inherent gains in plant reliability, plant emissions and CO2 emission savings.
- Provide a source of secure supply in cases of plant outages thereby enhancing the grid’s resilience and stability,
- Address grid bottlenecks to accelerate the penetration of RES and offer solutions to alleviate congestion in the distribution network,
- Provide black start facility capable of restarting the power station and grid in the event of a total shutdown and supply power to part of the network.
- Enable the ingress of further RES, including large-scale renewable energy offshore projects, thereby reducing the use of fossil fuels for electricity generation
- Provide fast frequency and voltage stabilisation to the Maltese grid in case Malta is isolated from the Italian grid because of maintenance or faults.
Timeline: Marsa A-Station
April
Published tender to engage consultants to act as project designers during the Design and Procurement of BESS
May
Started evaluation of bids received following closure of tender submission period
Submitted project description statements (PDS) to the ERA for both Delimara and Marsa A-station BESS
June
ERA reviews the Project Description Statement and confirms that an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is not required
Awarded tender for the consultants to act as project designers during Design and Procurement of BESS
August
The Planning Authority in Malta validated the application and formally initiated the statutory period
July
Permit PA 4651/23 was issued on July 3, 2024 for the installation, commissioning and operation of a battery energy storage system within the Marsa A-Station.
November
Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) tender (CT3026/24) for the Design and Build of two utility scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) at the A-Station tunnel in Marsa and Delimara Power Station in an environmentally friendly manner was issued, marking the next phase of the project.
January
The project was approved for co-financing through the European Regional Development Fund 2021-2027 following the mid-term review of the programme.
Timeline: Delimara Power Station
April
Published tender to engage consultants to act as project designers during the Design and Procurement of BESS
May
Started evaluation of bids received following closure of tender submission period
Submitted project description statements (PDS) to the ERA for both Delimara and Marsa A-station BESS
June
ERA reviews the Project Description Statement and confirms that an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is not required
Awarded tender for the consultants to act as project designers during Design and Procurement of BESS
August
The Planning Authority in Malta validated the application and formally initiated the statutory period
July
Official permits for the project were granted, as follows: Marsa A-Station (PA 4651/23): Permit was issued on July 3, 2024.
November
Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) tender (CT3026/24) for the Design and Build of two utility scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) at the A-Station tunnel in Marsa and Delimara Power Station in an environmentally friendly manner was issued, marking the next phase of the project.
February
On February 11, 2025 the project was succesfully approved for EU co-financing under the European Regional Development Fund 2021-2027
Funding
The BESS project will be split into two main projects
The first Project (BESS 1) is planned to be located at close proximity to the Marsa North Distribution Centre.
The second Project (BESS 2) will have a larger capacity than the first and will be located within the precincts of the Delimara Power Station.
Both projects have been approved for co-financing under the European Development Fund 2021-2027 under ‘RSO2.3. Developing smart energy systems, grids and storage at outside TEN-E (ERDF)’.
Project Brief
Interconnect Malta Ltd. (ICM) has been entrusted the responsibility to implement two Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) to be connected to the Maltese National electric grid network.
BESS is essentially a group of large batteries configured to store and dispatch electrical energy with very fast response when required.
The first system (BESS 1), rated at 20MWh (8MW), will be located in the underground tunnels of the former Marsa power station while the second system (BESS 2) shall have a rating 64MWh (32MW) and shall be located within the precincts of the Delimara power station.
This project is in alignment with Malta’s energy and climate strategies, as it emphasises the integration of energy emanating from renewable sources and the mitigation of energy curtailment, thus enhancing energy security and reducing carbon emissions.
BESS shall contribute towards enabling Malta to achieve its EU decarbonisation commitments, as it counters the intermittency characterising Variable Renewable Energy Sources (VRES) such as solar PV and stabilises the grid among the potential provision of other services.
Both projects have been accepted for co-financing under the ERDF Programme 2021-2027. The total eligible cost allocated under the ERDF grant for both the Delimara and Marsa projects is of €35 million.
The BESS project is also intended to mitigate weather-related challenges posed by renewable energy sources, which are reliant on climatic conditions and can therefore lead to significant dips in generation during moments of sudden cloud coverage severely affecting the PV generation in Malta.
Having battery-stored renewable energy will also allow the country to reduce its reliance on fossil fuel-generated power at peak times.
ICM has been granted development permits for both the Marsa and Delimara projects.