The global electric carmaker and battery technology giant Tesla Inc worked closely with Qatar’s General Electricity and Water Corporation (Kahramaa) and Al Attiyah Group to launch the first pilot project in the country to store electrical energy using batteries.
The pilot unit is currently connected to a substation of Nuaija station at a voltage of 11 kV and is controlled by the electrical distribution network.
Qatar’s young team member working on the Tesla Project
The first of its kind initiative in Qatar endeavors to secure production capacity at peak times, in order to raise energy efficiency and enhance sustainability. Energy storage units with a capacity of 1 MW / 4 MWh have been installed in the Nuaija station with the aim of storing energy outside peak times and using it at the maximum load of the station. It can also be used to improve the network voltage.
Kahramaa succeeded in completing the project ahead of schedule and starting it during the summer, which is one of the highest energy consumption periods in the country.
While Al Attiyah Group built and prepared the civil work and installed the equipment in the station in co-ordination with Kahramaa, Tesla, Inc. provided the energy storage system (batteries). The total cost of the project was $2.71 million.
Kahramaa is proud that its young Qatari cadres managed the project in all its stages, starting with designing and planning to implementation and operation. The work team has succeeded in overcoming many challenges it faced during the implementation, the most important being the operation and training during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The use of energy storage systems in electricity grids is one of the global practices to raise energy efficiency and enhance sustainability, as the importance of the success of this pilot project lies in opening the horizons for engaging in larger projects in the future by connecting them to high-load stations in the network and integrating them with the strategic projects of Kahramaa related to renewable energy projects, such as Al Kharsaah Solar Power Project.
