This spring, Eesti Energia announced plans to produce a 25-megawatt-hour (Mwh) and 50 Mwh storage facility, which will be installed in Ida-Viru County.

The tender to find a supplier for the large-scale facility was expected to be concluded this summer, with a pilot project to get underway in the second half of 2024. In addition to the storage facility, the successful bidder was also required to provide maintenance and a guarantee for a five-year period.

However, the tender was not successful.

"No successful bidder has been selected and the call for tenders has closed," according to the contract notice published in the Estonian Public Procurement Register at the end of September.

Eesti Energia spokesperson Mattias Kaiv told ERR that no suitable bidder had been found, in accordance with the conditions set out in the tender. However, Kaiv added that Eesti Energia has not given up on its plans to build a large-scale solar storage facility, and will continue to take the necessary steps to move forward with the project.

"Negotiations with suppliers are ongoing. We don't see any major time delay at the moment. According to current plans, the facility will begin operating at the end of 2024 or the beginning of 2025," Kaiv added.

With a capacity of 25 Mwh and 50 Mwh, the facility will be able to meet the one-hour consumption needs of around 150,000 households. It will also be able to participate in the power exchange and other energy markets to ensure the security of Estonia's electricity supply.

The planned facility is expected to have the capacity to store enough solar energy to supply 2,500 homes over a two-hour period. This could be used to offset high prices during the evening rush hour and would also fully cover the need for frequency reserve in the Baltic states.

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