NHOA Energy: ‘Europe now one of world’s most attractive storage markets’

• Europe one of the most attractive regions in the world for deploying storage, says NHOA Energy’s Lucie Kanius-Dujardin
• Italy is among the leading markets, as demonstrated by the results of the MACSE auctions
• However, bankability is critical with lenders scrutinising “every interface, from technology choices to contractual risk allocation”, Kanius-Dujardin said

Factors such as rising power price volatility, clearer regulatory frameworks, and a wave of “well-designed” auctions are finally aligning with rapidly declining battery costs to make Europe one of the most appealing regions of the world in which to deploy battery storage. That’s the view of Lucie Kanius-Dujardin, global managing director at NHOA Energy – a tier one global energy storage supplier, according to BloombergNEF – and a panellist at the upcoming Investing in Battery Energy Storage 2026 conference in London.

In an exclusive interview with Tamarindo insight director Ben Cook, Kanius-Dujardin said that, according to recent forecasts, Europe is on track to have a total installed utility scale storage capacity of more than 430 GWh by 2034. She added that half of the total capacity in Europe had been added in just one year. Kanius-Dujardin explained that this shift was no longer being driven by technology readiness, but rather by system pressure, that is grid congestion, renewable saturation, and the need for firm, flexible capacity.

Italian market is storage ‘frontrunner’

So which European markets will make the most progress in terms of deploying energy storage at scale in the next 12-24 months in Kanius-Dujardin’s view? “Italy will remain a frontrunner, driven by MACSE [the storage capacity auctions],” she said. “The scheme has already unlocked 10 GWh of contracted capacity and clearly established storage as system infrastructure.” However, Kanius-Dujardin also said that MACSE marks a transition in the sense that “with tight pricing and high competition, success now depends on execution excellence rather than speculative upside”.

Kanius-Dujardin added that the MACSE auctions showed that utility-scale batteries are no longer viewed as an experimental technology and they now constitute a “competitive, bankable infrastructure”. She continued: “The level of interest was extraordinary. The auction was more than four times oversubscribed…that tells you how much confidence developers and investors have in Italy’s framework.” Kanius-Dujardin also said the MACSE pricing – with clearing prices coming in at around €13,000/MWh/year, nearly 65% below the reserve price – sent a strong signal that storage can now be procured at scale and at cost levels that “genuinely compete with conventional capacity”. She added: “From now on, success will depend on flawless delivery, disciplined EPC execution, and robust performance over time.”

Bankability is critical

Kanius-Dujardin also said that, with regard to MACSE projects, bankability was critical. “With today’s tight margins, lenders scrutinise every interface, from technology choices to contractual risk allocation,” she explained. “Projects only work if revenue certainty, performance guarantees and counterparties are rock solid – any weakness in warranties, availability commitments or long-term service assumptions can quickly erode financing confidence.”

With regard to significant opportunities in other European markets, Kanius-Dujardin said the UK would continue to be a “cornerstone market”, with its combination of capacity mechanisms, tolling structures and “deep liquidity”. She added: “Even as ancillary revenues normalise, the UK remains one of the few markets where large-scale storage can be financed repeatedly and at speed.” Kanius-Dujardin also said that Germany was emerging as a major growth market “driven by extreme price volatility and high renewable penetration”, though the main constraint would be grid access, she added. Meanwhile, Southern Europe, particularly Spain, is also accelerating, according to Kanius-Dujardin, though several projects have been held up by grid connection issues. However, with regard to the Spanish market she said: “Falling capture prices and grid congestion are forcing policymakers to support storage through auctions and hybrid models, making deployment increasingly viable over the next two years.”

• This is an extract from an in-depth interview with NHOA Energy’s Lucie Kanius-Dujardin that forms part of our preview of the upcoming Investing in Battery Energy Storage 2026 conference in London –  to read the interview in full, click here