The European Commission has approved a €17.7bn Italian scheme to support the development of a centralised electricity storage system, consisting of electricity storage facilities with a joint capacity of more than 9 GW/71 GWh in the country. The scheme, approved under EU State aid rules, aims to facilitate the integration of renewables in the Italian electricity system.
It will take the form of annual payments covering investment and operating costs to electricity storage developers, which will be selected through a competitive bidding process, based on the lowest amount of aid requested per offered capacity volume. Eligible technologies currently include pumped-storage hydropower plants and electrochemical lithium-ion storage, but the list of eligible technologies will be revised every two years. A new “time-shifting trading platform” will created to pool up storage capacity and offer it to third parties in the form of standardised time-shifting products.
The measure is expected to contribute to the achievement of the objectives of the European Green Deal and 'Fit for 55' package, by enabling the integration of renewable energy sources in the Italian electricity system.
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