Pakistani cement producer Lucky Cement has said it is developing what it says is the largest solar-plus-storage project in the country.
Lucky Cement is working with the country’s renewable energy developer Reon Energy to deploy a 34MW solar power project at Lucky Cement’s Pezu Cement Plant in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, along with a supporting 5.589MW battery energy storage system.
The energy storage system in the project will improve the reliability of power supply by eliminating the intermittency of solar power generation and respond quickly in the event of grid interruption or insufficient power generation.
According to a press release issued a few days ago, the solar farm installed at the Pezu Cement Plant will be the largest solar power generation project in Pakistan, and the battery energy storage system deployed will be the largest energy storage project in the country at present.
Noman Hasan, Executive Director of Lucky Cement, said: “Given the current global environmental challenges, it is important to invest in renewable energy technologies, especially at the industrial level. As an industry leader, we understand our responsibility towards the environment, through our commitment to clean energy. Investment, we are committed to ensuring a sustainable future."
Reon Energy will provide the battery energy storage system for the project. Lucky Cement is the third company operating a solar-plus-storage project in Pakistan, the company said.
Reon Energy claims that its Reflex battery energy storage system is a customizable lithium-ion battery energy storage solution with a working life of 15 to 20 years. The company has also developed an energy management system (EMS) platform called SPARK, which it says is designed to maximize performance, reduce risk, and increase system flexibility, as well as reduce costs.
The Pakistani energy storage market is currently in a very early stage. The country’s independent transmission and distribution (T&D) infrastructure operator, NTDC, launched a tender for a 20MW battery storage project in September last year.