Alpiq Acquires 90% of Harmony Energy to Build Multi-Gigawatt Battery Platform

Alpiq is acquiring a 90 percent stake in Harmony Energy, a pan-European battery storage developer that has delivered 18 grid-scale projects totalling more than 700 megawatts and holds a multi-gigawatt pipeline across the UK, Germany, France and Poland. The deal adds roughly 400 megawatts of assets currently under construction to Alpiq's existing battery storage footprint, including a UK project expected to connect to the grid as early as the third quarter of 2026. Financial terms were not disclosed, and Harmony Energy will continue operating independently under its own brand with co-founder Peter Kavanagh remaining as chief executive and retaining a 10 percent stake.

 

Why Battery Storage Is Central to Grid Flexibility

 

Battery energy storage systems address a structural problem facing grids with growing shares of wind and solar: those sources generate power intermittently, while electricity demand does not follow the same pattern. Storage systems bank surplus generation when supply exceeds demand and discharge it when the reverse is true, smoothing the mismatch and helping keep the grid stable as renewable penetration increases. That flexibility function is becoming more valuable, and more commercially viable, as European grids add more variable renewable capacity each year.

For Alpiq, a company already established in flexible power generation and energy management, acquiring a developer with a proven delivery record and a substantial pipeline extends its reach across the full battery storage value chain, from development and construction through to long-term operation. Chief executive Antje Kanngiesser framed the deal as combining Alpiq's strength in flexible generation with Harmony Energy's development capabilities to scale into a leading European flexibility provider, rather than building that development capability from scratch.

 

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A Relationship Built Before the Acquisition

 

The two companies were not strangers before this deal. Alpiq had already acquired two battery storage projects from Harmony Energy, including the 100 megawatt Cheviré site in France, a relationship the companies describe as having built mutual trust and laid the groundwork for the larger transaction. That prior transactional history is a meaningful signal, since acquiring a majority stake in a company's broader platform carries more integration risk than a single asset purchase, and having already worked together on delivered projects gives both parties direct evidence of how the other operates before committing to a much larger combination.

 

Harmony Energy's Track Record and What Comes Next

 

Harmony Energy's core value lies in its demonstrated execution: 18 delivered grid-scale projects exceeding 700 megawatts combined capacity is a substantial track record in a sector where many developers hold large pipelines of announced projects but far fewer completed ones. The company has built specific capabilities across project development, construction and asset management of operating systems, covering the entire lifecycle rather than just the origination stage.

 

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Given the scale of its pipeline, Harmony Energy may continue divesting selected projects or assets to third-party investors, a practice the release notes it has followed before. That signals the acquisition is not intended to lock all future output exclusively to Alpiq's own balance sheet, but rather to let Harmony Energy continue operating flexibly within the wider market while Alpiq gains majority ownership and strategic direction over the platform.

The structure of the deal, preserving Harmony Energy's brand, team and entrepreneurial operating model while integrating Christoph Bellin, Alpiq's head of BESS, onto Harmony's management board, suggests an approach built around continuity rather than absorption. Peter Kavanagh described the partnership as a new chapter that lets Harmony Energy scale its pipeline while ensuring continuity for its team and partners. Whether that structure preserves the entrepreneurial execution that built Harmony Energy's track record while delivering the scale Alpiq is seeking, and whether the combined platform reaches its multi-gigawatt ambition on schedule, will determine how successfully this acquisition translates into operating capacity across Europe's key battery storage markets.

 

Source: Harmony Energy