Albania’s Project Blue has placed an order for a 130 MWh battery system with Sungrow for the first phase of a solar development. The project is described as subsidy-free, creating an early test of whether merchant solar-plus-storage can operate at scale without state-backed revenue support. Financial terms and commissioning dates for the battery order were not disclosed.
Scope of Sungrow equipment for the first phase
The order covers 26 PowerTitan 2.0 battery systems and 13 transformer units. It relates to the first 185 MWp phase of the Project Blue solar development. The battery order is presented as an equipment-supply milestone rather than confirmation of financial close or commercial operation.
Planned expansion and total project scale
Developers Matrix Konstruksion and Blessed Investment Group are also planning a second phase. That phase would add another 164 MWp of solar capacity and an 80 MW/180 MWh BESS. Combined, the wider Project Blue development would reach 349 MWp of solar and more than 300 MWh of storage.
Market role for storage in Albania’s power system
Albania is rapidly adding solar but remains heavily dependent on hydropower and electricity imports during poor hydrological periods. Battery storage can shift solar output from daytime into higher-value evening hours to reduce exposure to low daytime prices. It can also provide balancing services and reduce the volume of electricity that must be curtailed when the grid is saturated.
Commercial structure without government subsidies
The Project Blue development is being carried out without government subsidies, unlike auction-backed projects. Financing is therefore expected to rely more heavily on merchant-price assumptions, offtake arrangements, and the ability of storage to capture intraday spreads. If Project Blue reaches operation on a merchant basis, it could serve as a benchmark for the bankability of unsubsidised solar-storage projects across the Western Balkans.