Venteea: France's largest battery-based storage
solution boosts wind power development and
relieves pressure on power grid
ERDF, Saft and Schneider Electric have combined their strengths and expertise in a
project of unprecedented scale and scope to implement the largest ever battery storage
system in France, to support wind power generation and take pressure off the grid. The
Venteea project is located in eastern France (Aube).
There is a growing consensus that renewable energy should play a greater role in power generation.
However, these energy sources tend to be intermittent and unpredictable, putting increasing pressure
on the grid. High-capacity electrical storage systems help resolve this issue by enabling more grid
flexibility. Energy storage helps stabilize the grid to better match generation and loads and also
provides frequency and voltage regulation, one of the major challenges involved in ensuring highquality, uninterrupted supply, especially for commercial and industrial customers. This is the focus of
the innovative Venteea project.
The aptly named Venteea 'smart' grid solution applies intelligent technologies that operate on two
levels. Firstly, it optimizes two-way communication with the grid and helps meet all technical
requirements (such as voltage levels and schedules). Secondly, it enables next-day forecasting of
electricity production and demand, in turn allowing for the development of more tailored services that
meet both grid and customer requirements.
This "multi-service" approach paves the way for a new business model in which storage costs are
spread across the different stakeholders involved, all of whom are set to benefit from this new
technology.
The Intensium® Max 2 MW/1.3 MWh battery system supplied by Saft, together with the Energy Storage
Box deployed by Schneider Electric, will help integrate renewable power generation on the grid and
step up its contribution to next-generation energy solutions.
th
The state-of-the-art storage system will be inaugurated at 10:00 am on June 5 , 2015 at the
Venteea site in Chervey (Aube), eastern France, in the presence of François Baroin, senator and
mayor of Troyes, Philippe Monloubou, chairman of the board at ERDF, along with Luc Rémont, CEO of
Schneider Electric France, and Fred Hapiak, Director of Saft's Energy Storage business unit. Following
a presentation of the storage system at the site, there will be an update on progress on the Venteea
smart grid trials at Troyes city hall. The VENTEEA project is supported by the French Agency for the
Environment and Energy Management (ADEME). For further information, please contact Pierre Mazaré:
+33 (0)6 98 13 86 49, or pierre.mazare@erdf.fr
N° 34-15
Venteea project in brief
Venteea is a smart grid field demonstration project, running over three and a half years, led by a consortium of eight
industrial and two academic partners (ERDF, Saft, Schneider Electric, General Electric, EDF R&D, Boralex, RTE et Made),
supported by the French Agency for the Environment and Energy Management (ADEME). Venteea is a major French project
aimed at developing the best conditions for ensuring economically and technically efficient integration of renewable energy
sources, in particular wind power plants, into rural medium voltage distribution networks. The project is located in
Champagne-Ardenne, the main region in France for wind generation (over 15% of the installed base). The industrial-scale
demonstrator network includes a primary substation with a 20 MVA transformer, six 20 kV feeders and 130 secondary
substations supplying 3,200 customers. Two wind farms are connected to the network, with installed capacity of 12 MW
(dedicated feeder) and 6 MW (non-dedicated feeder), respectively. www.venteea.fr
About Saft
Saft (Euronext: Saft) is a global leader in the design and manufacture of high-tech batteries for industry. The Group
is the world’s premier supplier of nickel batteries and primary lithium batteries for the industrial infrastructure and
processes, transportation, civil and military electronics markets. In addition, Saft is the number one provider to the
space and defence industries with its Li-ion batteries technologies, which are also deployed in the energy storage,
transportation and telecoms markets. More than 4,000 employees in 18 countries, 14 manufacturing sites and an
extensive sales network all contribute to driving the Group’s long-term growth.
About Schneider Electric
As a global specialist in energy management and automation with operations in more than 100 countries, Schneider
Electric offers integrated solutions across multiple market segments, including leadership positions in Nonresidential & Residential Buildings, Industries & Machines Manufacturers, Utilities & Infrastructure and Data Centers
& Networks. Focused on making energy safe, reliable, efficient, productive and green, the Group's 170,000
employees achieved revenues of 25 billion euros in 2014, through an active commitment to help individuals and
organizations make the most of their energy.
About ERDF
ERDF is a public service company that manages the electricity distribution network. It develops, operates and
modernizes the electrical grid and manages the associated data. ERDF carries out customer connections, 24 hour
troubleshooting, meter readings and all technical interventions. It is independent of the energy suppliers, which are
responsible for the marketing and management of the electricity contract. ERDF employs 38,000 people and serves
35 million people that are connected by a low and medium voltage network with a length of one million, four
hundred thousand kilometres.
www.erdf.fr
Media contacts:
ERDF: Pierre Mazaré, head of Communications, Champagne-Ardenne
Tel.: +33 (0)6 98 13 86 49, e-mail: pierre.mazare@erdf.fr
Saft: Jill Ledger, Corporate Communication and Institutional Relations Director
Tel. +33 (0)1 49 93 17 77, e-mail: jill.ledger@saftbatteries.com
Schneider Electric: Jean-Pierre Ghérardi, Press Relations France
Tel.: +33 (0)6 86 56 87 65, e-mail: jean-pierre.gherardi@schneider-electric.com
N° 34-15