Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) as a service in Finland: Business model and regulatory challenges

Abstract Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) can provide services to the final customer using electricity, to a microgrid, and/or to external actors such as the Distribution System Operator (DSO) and Transmission System Operator (TSO). In this paper, BESS as a service business model archetypes are drawn from case studies of 10 BESS as a service projects in Finland. It is found that, in addition to the service being provided by the BESS, the ownership of the system can vary: it can either be owned by the final consumer of electricity or by a third party who will provide the BESS as a service. The findings of the interviews are placed within the Finnish regulatory framework for storage and demand response services. It is concluded that the key enablers for the BESS as a service business model are a regulatory framework that allows stacked revenues and technological interoperability across a multi-customer business model.