Europe makes moves in BESS: Portugal will tender 1 GW and Italy opens its call for bids, while Spain awaits its auctions

Europe is accelerating the launch of new auctions linked to energy storage , with Portugal and Italy making progress in their respective competitive procedures during October. While the Portuguese government will auction 1,050 MVA of grid access capacity and the Italian operator Terna opens registrations for its 2028 capacity market, Spain is still awaiting the first calls for its own mechanism.

These moves come against a backdrop of growing need for flexibility, reliability, and the integration of renewable energy into European electricity systems. However, the instruments differ: Portugal will allocate grid access rights for storage projects, while Italy will remunerate available capacity to ensure security of supply.

In the Spanish case, the approval of Order TED/966/2026 , published on September 17 in the Official State Gazette (BOE), finally establishes the regulatory framework for its capacity market. However, this regulation still needs to be translated into the auctions that will define the contracting conditions for companies in the sector.

Portugal to tender 1 GW for batteries: access conditions and operational restrictions

On October 22nd, the Government of Portugal formalized the opening of two competitive procedures for a maximum of 1,050 MVA , aimed at facilitating the incorporation of storage systems through the allocation of reserve titles for injection capacity into the electricity grid.

The tenders were approved through provisions 12924-B/2026 and 12924-C/2026 , published in the Diário da República, and will be managed by the General Directorate of Energy and Geology (DGEG).

Of the total volume, 750 MVA correspond to independent storage facilities, known as standalone , while the remaining 300 MVA will be reserved for renewable generation centers with batteries located on the same site.

Both procedures will be carried out through electronic auctions, with capacity distributed among the connection points established in the documentation of each call.

The initiative opens up new possibilities for battery developers, although the allocation of injection capacity does not guarantee having an equivalent power to charge energy from the grid .

In this regard, access limits for demand are a determining factor for project operation. Load capacity will depend on the conditions of each node, with particularly relevant restrictions in certain locations, such as Sines, according to sector information published by Optimize Energy.

Furthermore, the shared technical terms regarding the upcoming tenders contemplate the possibility that the network operator may limit the operation of storage systems during certain periods of the year.

Specifically, the industry documentation indicates up to 500 hours per year of combined charging and discharging restrictions for stand-alone batteries and up to 750 hours of grid charging restrictions for hybrid projects . These limits should be verified against the final specifications applicable to each installation.

Therefore, the allocated capacity does not necessarily imply unrestricted availability for all 8,760 hours of the year. For developers, access conditions, location, and operational limitations must be incorporated into the technical design and economic model.

This aspect is especially relevant for projects that depend on energy arbitrage, whose profitability is linked to the possibility of charging electricity during periods of reduced prices and unloading during the hours of highest market value .

Italy opens its call for proposals for 2028 and reduces the recognized power output of batteries.

For its part, Terna, the Italian operator, confirmed that the main auction of the capacity market for the 2028 delivery period will be held on December 21, 2026 , starting at 10:00 a.m.

The operator opened the application period on October 20 , while interested companies will have until November 3, at 12:00 pm , to submit their applications.

Subsequently, the schedule sets November 23 as the deadline for incorporating certain technical documentation and completing specific guarantees, while December 14 will be the deadline for submitting the deposits corresponding to the participation.

The call is accompanied by modifications to the power accreditation coefficients for storage systems , known as derating factors, which determine what proportion of the installed power is recognized as firm capacity within the mechanism.

The new technical provisions were approved on October 16 by the Ministry of Environment and Energy Security , following the regulatory review by the Energy, Networks and Environment Regulatory Authority (ARERA).

The change particularly affects four-hour battery projects, whose recognized power decreases in all Italian electric zones, although with significant differences depending on the location.

In the North and North Central regions , the coefficient falls from 51% to 40%, while in the South Central region it drops from 54% to 51%. The largest reductions are in the South and Calabria, where the percentage falls from 40% to 21% , and in Sicily and Sardinia, with a reduction from 31% to 21%.

In practical terms, a 100 MW battery with four hours of storage will be able to provide 40 MW of capacity in the North, 51 MW in the Central South and only 21 MW in the South, Calabria, Sicily and Sardinia.

This means that, for an installation located in the South and Calabria, the recognized power is reduced by 47.5% compared to the previous parameters , which directly modifies the volume of capacity that it will be able to offer in the auction.

The revision responds to the increased forecasts for the integration of batteries into the Italian electricity system. A greater presence of storage capacity modifies the contribution of each additional installation to meeting peak demand periods.

The new parameters are particularly relevant for developers who are structuring projects and negotiating financing, because the recognized capacity determines the potential volume of income from the mechanism.

Furthermore, the update introduces considerable differences between regions, even for longer-lasting systems. In the case of eight-hour batteries, the reported figures reach 71% in the Central-South region and drop to 29% in the South and Calabria.

These variations necessitate jointly considering installed capacity, storage duration, and project location to assess its competitiveness within the capacity market.

Another modification relates to the limit of capacity contribution from outside to Northern Italy, which is reduced from 4.2 GW to 1.7 GW , equivalent to a decrease of 2.5 GW.

Furthermore, the new conditions do not retroactively alter the battery contracts already awarded, so the treatment of existing projects and future investments presents relevant differences.

The Italian mechanism also coexists with the MACSE , intended to contract storage through a specific scheme, which adds another dimension to the analysis of revenue opportunities for battery systems.

In parallel with the opening of the call for proposals, Italy authorized approximately 2.7 GW of new battery storage projects during October , reflecting the volume of initiatives that are progressing through the administrative process.

According to the authorizations published by the Ministry of Environment and Energy Security (MASE) , the latest package comprises eight projects totaling more than 1.7 GW , in addition to the 954 MW approved during the first weeks of the month.

The largest development is a 1,000 MW facility in Brindisi, in the Puglia region , promoted by Wind Energy & Partners. The project received authorization through decree 298/2026 and includes the installation of 460 battery banks , with an estimated construction period of 12 months.

The remaining authorizations include projects of 250 MW in Uta and Assemini, Sardinia; 116 MW in Bari; 99.9 MW in Copertino; and 95.76 MW in Grottaglie , among other initiatives distributed throughout the regions of Campania, Lazio and Sardinia.

This expansion of the authorized portfolio takes on special relevance in light of the review of capacity coefficients for 2028 , given that Terna bases the new parameters on the growth of storage forecasts within the electricity system.

In this way, the Italian market combines progress in project authorizations with more restrictive conditions for firm power accreditation for new batteries , especially in the southern regions and the islands.

However, authorized capacity does not necessarily equate to built or operational power, so the realization of these investments will depend on the following stages of development, construction and access to remuneration mechanisms.

Spain awaits its first capacity market auctions

In parallel with the progress of Portugal and Italy, Spain is at a different stage of implementation , after approving the regulatory framework of its capacity market through Order TED/966/2026, which came into force on September 18.

The regulation establishes a centralized mechanism for contracting firm power, aimed at guaranteeing security of supply and providing economic signals for new investments in generation, storage and demand management .

The model includes three modalities: main, adjustment and transitional auctions , designed to meet the firmness needs identified by the system operator in different time horizons.

The main auctions will allow for capacity to be contracted in advance of the service provision period. For new investments in generation and storage, contracts may have a duration of up to 15 years , depending on the reference technology and the established conditions.

In contrast, existing generation and storage facilities will have 12-month service periods, while demand resources will be able to access contracts of between one and ten years.

Furthermore, Spanish regulations establish an award system through sealed bids and a pay-as-bid appeal procedure, whereby each successful bidder will receive the price corresponding to their own bid.

For batteries, one of the determining aspects will be the definition of firmness coefficients , which will allow us to establish how much each technology contributes to covering the system's needs.

However, regulatory approval still needs to materialize in concrete calls for tenders, with contracting volumes, technical parameters, and economic conditions that allow developers to prepare their bids.

The Association of Electricity Companies (AELEC) believes there is still time to hold the first auction in 2027. Its president, Marina Serrano, explained that the organization had hoped the mechanism would be approved before the holidays, a possibility that would have allowed more time to prepare the call for bids.

For companies in the sector, the development of these calls for proposals will determine not only the opportunities for participation, but also the remuneration conditions and the firmness criteria that can support new investments in energy storage .