Transmission operator EMS said it has signed grid-connection agreements covering around 2 GW of battery energy storage. The same statement indicated that roughly 11 GW of wind and solar capacity remains in the transmission connection process. The development points to more battery projects moving from earlier stages toward a grid-access phase.
Negative-price purchases and storage value
EPS trading executive Davor Pupovac said the Serbian utility bought substantial volumes of electricity at negative prices during April and May. He linked this to periods when expanding renewable output creates generation levels that exceed immediate demand. In such conditions, batteries can absorb electricity when prices are extremely low or negative and discharge later when market conditions tighten. This allows storage to monetise the spread between surplus and scarcity hours.
CBAM-linked market shifts and cross-border trading
Pupovac also said CBAM-related changes and regional electricity surpluses are affecting liquidity for conventional traders. He added that this is reducing some traditional cross-market arbitrage opportunities. Serbia is adding solar and wind rapidly, while neighbouring Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Greece are also expanding renewables. As renewable output becomes more synchronised, cheap electricity can appear across multiple markets at the same time.
In that setting, Pupovac said shifting electricity between countries may generate less value than shifting it between hours. Cross-border transmission remains important, but time arbitrage becomes increasingly valuable alongside geographic arbitrage. Batteries can support this model because they can also provide balancing services. They can further help renewable developers facing curtailment or weak capture prices during high-output periods.
Connection agreements versus final build-out
EMS’s grid-connection agreements covering around 2 GW should not be read as confirmation that all capacity will be built, according to the source facts. Financing, equipment procurement, market-access rules and final investment decisions will determine how much capacity reaches operation. The connection milestone indicates Serbia’s storage market is moving closer to execution as the country progresses through its renewable transition.
The first phase involved adding generation, while the next phase will increasingly focus on what happens when too much electricity arrives at the same time.