An energy storage system has been installed at the Cars Jean football stadium in the Netherlands.

As well as battery units, the green upgrade includes solar panels on the roof and charging infrastructure for electric vehicles (EVs) to allow football fans to recharge their clean cars while they watch matches.

The rooftop solar panels will generate renewable power in the daytime, which the batteries will then store until night.

This is when demand is the highest, as the stadium has to turn on its lights and accommodate thousands of visitors, many of which increasingly drive EVs.

Grid developer Alfen is delivering the project for Scholt Energy Control, with support from grid operator Stedin and the municipality of The Hague.

Andreas Plenk, Global Sales Director Energy Storage at Alfen, said: “This project brings together all of Alfen’s areas of expertise: grid connections, EV charging equipment and energy storage.

“Integrating these areas of expertise will play an increasingly important role to incorporate the growing amount of renewables and electric vehicles, as these are causing imbalance on the electricity grid.”

The project is expected to be operational in the first quarter of 2018.

• Cars Jean, Low Carbon, Netherlands, The Hague, battery storage, renewable, solar