Uniper and NGEN break ground on 50 MW battery in Wilhelmshaven

On 9 April 2026, Uniper and NGEN held the official groundbreaking ceremony for a 50 MW / 100 MWh grid-connected battery energy storage facility in Wilhelmshaven, Germany. The system is being built on the site of a decommissioned Uniper coal-fired power plant and is scheduled for commissioning in the fourth quarter of 2026.

The facility will balance short-term fluctuations in the grid caused by wind and solar feed-in. Northern Germany carries a high concentration of wind generation, and the resulting variability puts sustained pressure on system stability. A grid-connected battery at this scale can respond within seconds, absorbing surpluses and releasing energy when generation falls short.

The project forms part of Uniper's Energy Transformation Hub Nordwest, a programme converting the Wilhelmshaven site into integrated renewable and hydrogen infrastructure. Reusing an existing power plant site brings a practical advantage: the grid connection, land and permitting framework are already in place, which shortens the path from decision to operation.

Representing Uniper at the ceremony were Chief Operating Officer Holger Kreetz, Jan Taschenberger, COO of New Green Power & Gas, and project manager Harald Poppinga. NGEN was represented by Co-Founder and CEO Roman Bernard, Chief Marketing Officer Mirjam Bernard, and Marco Scholz, Managing Director of NGEN Germany. Lower Saxony State Premier Olaf Lies and Wilhelmshaven Mayor Carsten Feist attended as guests of honour.