Ignitis and emsys VPP expand battery storage into Lithuania’s balancing market

Ignitis and emsys VPP are upgrading their virtual power plant in Lithuania to add balancing energy services and battery storage, a move designed to improve grid stability as the Baltic power system absorbs more renewables. The expansion comes after the Baltic states synchronized with continental Europe’s grid in February 2025 and opens a path for faster frequency control services.

Why it matters: - Battery storage can respond fast enough to help keep Lithuania’s grid frequency stable as variable renewable energy grows. - The upgrade gives Ignitis and emsys VPP a way to support balancing services in the Baltic power market. - The move adds flexibility to a power system that has new stability requirements after the Baltic states joined the continental European synchronous area in February 2025.

What happened: - Ignitis and Germany’s emsys VPP are expanding their virtual power plant partnership to support the Baltic power grid. - The VPP will be upgraded to provide balancing energy in Lithuania’s electricity market. - The project is designed to integrate battery storage systems into the VPP for frequency control and grid stabilization. - The announcement was dated October 19, 2026.

The details: - Ignitis and emsys VPP have worked together since 2024. - The virtual power plant was first deployed to support direct marketing of Ignitis’ roughly 650 MW portfolio. - The collaboration also covers power generation forecasts for Ignitis’ wind and solar portfolio. - Battery storage systems are already being traded on the intraday market. - To enter the balancing market, assets must be technically connected and prequalified. - The assets also must connect to the control system of Lithuania’s transmission system operator, Litgrid. - The current phase focuses on automatic frequency restoration reserves and manual frequency restoration reserves, known as aFRR and mFRR. - The system may later expand to include wind and solar plants as additional flexibility sources. - Balancing power offsets short-term mismatches between generation and consumption and helps keep grid frequency at 50 Hz. - Positive balancing power can come from increased generation, lower demand or storage discharge when supply drops. - Negative balancing power is used when there is too much electricity in the system. - Different reserve products, including FCR, aFRR and mFRR, operate on different timescales based on how fast the grid needs a response. - The project is supported by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy through the Renewable Energy Solutions Programme of the German Energy Solutions Initiative.

Between the lines: - The partnership is moving from forecasting and direct marketing into active grid services, which usually signals a more mature and higher-value role for distributed energy assets. - Battery storage is the fastest flexible resource in the mix, so the upgrade positions Ignitis to monetize batteries in both trading and balancing markets. - The February 2025 synchronization of the Baltic states with continental Europe raised the strategic importance of fast frequency control, making this expansion timely rather than optional.

What's next: - Ignitis and emsys VPP may expand the platform beyond batteries to include more flexibility from wind and solar assets. - The companies are likely to continue scaling the VPP as more assets are prequalified for balancing services. - The added capabilities could deepen participation in Lithuania’s balancing market while supporting renewable integration.

The bottom line: - Ignitis and emsys VPP are turning a virtual power plant into a grid-support tool, with battery storage at the center of Lithuania’s next phase of balancing and flexibility trading.