POWER Digest [July 2025]

GE Vernova Will Power Spanish Onshore Wind Project. GE Vernova’s Wind segment announced it has signed an agreement to provide Forestalia with eight of its 6.1-MW wind turbines to power a 49-MW wind project in Aragón, Spain. The deal is part of a framework agreement that the two companies first announced in December 2023 to support the development of projects in the region. Spain has a goal of installing 62 GW of wind in the country by 2030, part of its plan to generate more than 80% of its electricity from renewable resources by the end of the decade. Forestalia promotes, develops, and builds projects in wind energy, photovoltaics, electric generation through biomass, and pellet production. Forestalia has a portfolio with generation capacity of more than 2 GW, mostly located in rural areas. The company has built energy projects for groups including Repsol, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, Lightsource BP, and Bruc Management, totaling more than 4 GW.

Iraq Brings First Fully Solar-Powered Village Online. The Rwanga Foundation in May announced completion and commissioning of the Kulak Solar Village, Iraq’s first fully off-grid, solar-powered community. The project is considered a model of innovation for the region, as it integrates renewable energy with sustainable agriculture. “This project proves that we can protect our environment, empower our people, and build a future rooted in resilience, dignity, and hope. Our vision is to see this model grow across Iraq—one village at a time—until sustainability becomes the standard, not the exception,” said Idris Nechirvan Barzani, founder and president of the Rwanga Foundation. The Kulak Solar Village will support solar-powered irrigation systems, with plans for community training programs in regenerative agriculture. Officials said there are plans to expand the model across Kurdistan and central Iraq by 2030, as part of a partnership with regional authorities and international organizations, forming the cornerstone of Rwanga’s broader Green Kurdistan campaign.

Caterpillar, Alectra Energy Solutions Deploy Gensets for Canadian Manufacturing Group. Caterpillar said it is expanding its business with Alectra Energy Solutions, a provider of integrated energy solutions. This collaboration enables Linamar Corp., a diversified advanced manufacturing company, to reduce energy costs during periods of peak grid demand through the deployment of distributed energy resources (DERs). Alectra, under a 15-year power purchase agreement, recently deployed 12 Cat G3500 series natural-gas generator sets for behind-the-meter power production at Linamar’s diversified manufacturing facilities in Guelph and Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The project included construction financing facilitated by Cat Financial, while the local dealer, Toromont Cat, completed the engineering, procurement, and construction. The turnkey power systems are dispatched through Caterpillar’s distributed energy resource management system software solutions to reduce Linamar’s energy costs during periods of peak grid demand.

BW ESS, Nordea Bank Sign $65 Millon Financing Deal for Storage in Nordic Countries. BW ESS in late April said the company has secured a $65 million loan agreement with Nordea Bank for its 211-MW/211-MWh portfolio of operational battery storage assets in Sweden, owned in partnership with Ingrid Capacity. The deal is touted as the largest battery energy storage systems (BESS) financing contract in the Nordics to date. BW ESS is part of BW Group, a global energy and maritime infrastructure company. This deal continues a longstanding relationship between Nordea Bank and BW Group; the two have collaborated for more than 20 years. The portfolio of 14 large-scale BESS facilities is the largest in the Nordics. It was inaugurated in October of last year. The assets are majority owned by BW ESS and were jointly delivered by BW ESS and Ingrid Capacity.

Return Starts Construction of Large Dutch BESS Project. A 100-MW/200-MWh BESS in Waddinxveen, with ability to provide 50% of the power needed by the city of The Hague in the Netherlands, is set to go live in mid-2026. The Antares installation, supported by Return, an energy storage company, is expected to help stabilize the Dutch power grid, and enable integration of more renewable energy. ING, a major energy financing group, provides the largest part of the funding for the $96 million project. More funding comes via additional facilities from Meewind and Nationaal Groenfonds. Facility partners are Alfen and SPIE Nederland for technical execution, with Vattenfall as one of multiple capacity off-takers. Antares is the second-largest energy storage project in the Netherlands after the Mufasa project in Vlissingen, which Return announced last month. Return has a BESS portfolio of 7 GW in development across Europe.

Cygni Opens 4.8-GWh BESS Gigafactory in India. Hyderabad, India–headquartered Cygni Energy, India’s largest independent energy storage solutions company, announced it has opened its Phase I, fully operational and automated BESS gigafactory. Located in E-Mobility Valley, at the Electronics Manufacturing Clusters, or EMC, complex in Maheshwaram, Hyderabad, the factory also is India’s first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-qualified facility equipped with an Advanced Engineering Lab and Battery Management System Lab. The facility is located on a five-acre campus and is designed with an initial capacity to produce 4.8 GWh of high-capacity battery packs for electric vehicles and energy storage systems. These advanced BESS systems will cater to large grid-scale stationary storage projects and independent power producers. Venkat Rajaraman, founder and CEO of Cygni, said, “This gigafactory positions us to lead in the energy storage sector, delivering high-quality, safe battery packs across multiple applications. Cygni’s automated BESS assembly line is engineered for advanced, high-quality BESS module manufacturing, leveraging globally recognized best practices such as Poka-Yoke-enabled stations and end-to-end traceability. We plan to grow exponentially in energy storage over the next few years in India and internationally.” Rajaraman said Phase II of the gigafactory will increase manufacturing capacity to 10.8 GWh, with the addition of three more automated manufacturing lines.

Sarens Installs 83 Wind Turbines for Canadian Wind Farm. Sarens said the company is installing 83 wind turbines for the Buffalo Plains Wind Farm project near Lomond, Alberta, Canada. The wind farm once operational will have 494 MW of generation capacity. Sarens, a global group that provides crane rental, heavy lifting, and engineered transport, was commissioned by Borea Construction to offload and install the Siemens Gamesa–manufactured wind turbines. The turbines—models SG 6.0-170 and 5.0-145—each have a nominal capacity of 6.6 MW and 5.2 MW, respectively. The project features 45 of the 6.0-170 turbines, and 38 5.0-145 turbines. Sarens has a long history of supporting wind energy projects across Canada, including the Golden South Wind Project in Assiniboia and the Blue Hill Project in Saskatchewan. Sarens also has provided maintenance support at the Whitla Wind facility, the largest wind farm in Alberta, ensuring the ongoing functionality of turbines by handling blade, rotor, gearbox, and main shaft assembly and disassembly.

—Darrell Proctor is a senior editor for POWER.