Nuveen and Exus to develop 800MW Italian battery projects portfolio

Clean energy fund manager Nuveen Infrastructure (formerly Glennmont Partners) and renewables asset management and development firm Exus Renewables have agreed to co-develop 800MW of southern Italian battery storage projects, with each company co-developing a portfolio of 400MW.

The deal will see Nuveen Infrastructure and Exus commence a series of standalone battery energy storage system (BESS) projects across the Puglia region of Italy. These will constitute four projects each for both Nuveen Infrastructure and Exus, each with a total capacity of 100MW.

The developer for all projects will be an undisclosed Italian developer specialising in battery storage systems. The project will use Alfen’s The Battery Elements battery storage system built in a modular design, capable of storing 41MWh of energy.

Construction on the first projects in the portfolio is planned to begin in Q4 2026.

Francesco Cacciabue, global head of clean energy investments at Nuveen Infrastructure, commented on the announcement in a release:

“As Italy continues its renewable energy transition, battery technology stands to play a hugely important role in supporting established clean energy generators, through its ability to manage intermittency issues and associated price fluctuations.

“The quality of existing battery storage technologies means they are now capable of fulfilling this role, and they will be a critical enabler as Italy and Europe look to meet their clean energy targets.

“As a result, we’re pleased to be working with our Italian developer on this project and are confident this new portfolio will provide strong returns to investors, while also supporting more traditional renewables projects in the region.”

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The announcement is the latest to come from Italy, which Aurora Energy named as one of the top three markets for battery storage investments in Europe, with an ambitious target of 9GW battery capacity by 2030, coupled with opening its ancillary markets to BESS.

Added Alfonso Cebrián, head of international business development at Exus:

“This deal marks our first step into expanding our presence in the Italian market, signalling our intent to establish a robust development platform in Italy that is poised to drive future growth and innovation in the region.”

Natalia Ordoñez, Head of EU Development & Construction at Exus, added: “Our meticulous approach to developing these projects, with land rights secured and grid interconnection ensured, is part of our broader vision to establish a robust pipeline of BESS across Europe.”

This latest move in energy storage for Nuveen Infrastructure comes after they entered the market in 2023 with the announcement of the construction of a 30MW BESS project in Finland.