Brazil's first battery auction receives over 6 project entries.

EPE (Energy Research Company) released this Monday (3) the result of the registration of projects for the first Brazilian auction aimed exclusively at contracting energy storage systems using batteries.

In total, 6.091 different ventures were registered to compete in the contest, whose registration period ended last Thursday (31). The Northeast region concentrates 71,1% of the registered capacity, followed by the Southeast (18,8%), South (5,1%), Midwest (3,4%) and North (1,6%).

Projects could be registered in two categories. The first was National Storage (2028 A), intended for systems that meet the minimum requirements for national content. In this category, 5.296 projects were registered, totaling 261.408 MW of power.

The Storage modality (2028 B), open to projects with national or imported equipment, received 5.734 projects, totaling 281.003 MW of power.

According to EPE, 4.939 projects were registered simultaneously in both modalities. Therefore, although the two auctions received more than 11 registrations, the number of distinct projects registered was 6.091.

In both cases, the contracted projects must provide power to the SIN (National Interconnected System) starting August 1, 2028, through contracts with a duration of 15 years.

What do the numbers show?

The results represent the first snapshot of market interest in the country's first battery auction. EPE emphasizes, however, that the number of registrations does not mean that all projects will participate in the bidding.

According to the state-owned company, the modular characteristics of the storage systems, combined with the exemption from environmental licensing and project certifications at this registration stage, contributed to the record number of registrations.

Therefore, the technical qualification phase will be crucial in determining which projects will be eligible to compete in the auction, as explained by Roberto Valer, CTO of Huawei Digital Power Brazil, one of the companies most interested in the bidding process.

“The expectation is for robust contracting, aligned with market demand and systemic needs. From now on, the focus is on monitoring the public consultation and the tender, the analysis of the projects by EPE, and the publication of the flow map by ONS,” he said.

Next stages

With the registration period now closed, the projects will proceed to the technical qualification phase, conducted by EPE. Only projects deemed eligible will be able to participate in the bidding process.

According to the schedule released by the state-owned company, the Technical Note on Flow Capacity will be published on September 28th. Technical qualification is scheduled for November 17th, while the auctions will be held on December 2nd and 4th.

During the registration period, EPE reported having answered more than 1.300 questions submitted by industry agents regarding the procedures for registering and qualifying projects.

Auction establishes new requirements.

The guidelines defined by the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) for the first battery auction establish 15-year contracts, a minimum power of 30 MW, a minimum discharge time of four hours, a maximum recharge time of six hours, and a minimum efficiency of 85%.

The tender also requires grid-forming technology, location bonuses, and local content criteria linked to financing from BNDES (Brazilian Development Bank). The start of supply is scheduled for August 1, 2028, with the possibility of earlier start if needed by the electrical system.

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