Sunly, already one of the leading renewable energy developers in the Baltics, continues to strengthen its role in the regional energy market by expanding its activities in electricity system balancing. Through SIA “Sunly Hz”,Sunly can offer up to 100 MW of capacity to Latvia’s balancing market, enabling the company to use its generation capacity not only to produce electricity, but also to support the stability of Latvia’s electricity system.
The capacity has been technically qualified to provide manual Frequency Restoration Reserve (mFRR) for both upward and downward balancing, supporting the stable operation of the electricity system. Balancing reserves keep the electricity system stable when generation and consumption change. This flexibility has become increasingly important as the Baltics operate within the Continental European power system and add more solar and wind capacity.
The technical prequalification by Latvia’s transmission system operator “Augstspriegumatīkls” (AST) enables “Sunly Hz” to aggregate several electricity generation units into a single reserve unit and offer their flexibility to the balancing market.
“This summer clearly demonstrated how local renewable energy generation and the provision of balancing capacity can protect Latvian consumers from price shocks that could otherwise have been triggered by the conflict in the Strait of Hormuz and heatwaves across Europe. Today, solar and wind power plants already account for 40% of Latvia’s total installed generation capacity, which is increasing the need for balancing capacity. We are pleased to see that a growing number of renewable energy producers recognise the economic potential not only in generating electricity, but also in participating in the provision of balancing services,”says Gatis Junghāns, Member of the Management Board of AST.
“The recent storm in Latvia was another reminder of how important a secure and resilient electricity system is for everyday life - from households and businesses to hospitals, schools and public services. Balancing reserves cannot prevent physical damage to the grid, but they are an important part of a system that must be able to respond to changing conditions. Over the past few years, Sunly has been actively developing large-scale hybrid energy parks in Latvia, combining renewable generation and energy storage.As more of our energy assets move into operation, we are also taking the next step – using them more actively to support the wider energy system. This 100 MW milestone is an important part of that transition,”says Toms Nāburgs, Country Manager of Sunly in Latvia.
Expanding balancing services across the Baltics
The company has been building experience in this area in Estonia since 2024, using both solar generation and battery storage to provide balancing services. In Estonia, Sunly participates in all FRR markets with a total of up to 20 MW of qualified capacity.Sunly is now adding 100 MW of technically qualified capacity to its Latvian portfolio.
In Estonia, Sunly has also expanded into electricity retail, supplying renewable electricity to both households and businesses, and into heating solutions. Together, these activities reflect Sunly's broader development from renewable energy generation towards an energy business combining generation, storage, trading, balancing, heating and customer services.
“Our experience in Estonia has shown that renewable energy assets can play a much broader role than simply producing electricity. Bringing this experience to Latvia and reaching 100 MW of qualified balancing capacity is an important next step. As renewable generation and battery storage continue to grow across the Baltics, trading, balancing and flexible asset management will become an increasingly important part of our business,” says Janno Jõulu, Head of Energy Trading at Sunly.
With 277 MW of solar capacity already in operation, Sunly is one of the largest solar power producers in Latvia. Of this, 225 MW comes from solar parks in the Valmiera, Madona and Krāslava municipalities that started operations this year. Sunly’s largest solar park in Latvia – the 104 MW park in Zirņi parish, Saldus municipality – is currently under construction and is expected to start generating electricity by the end of this year. As Sunly continues to develop its hybrid parks, the company, in cooperation with Rolls-Royce, will also deploy four battery energy storage systems in Latvia with a total capacity of 490 MWh.
Sunly
Sunly is an integrated energy infrastructure platform that combines renewable generation, storage and large-scale electricity demand, turning clean power into a competitive advantage for electrified industry and digital infrastructure. Sunly operates in the Baltics and Poland. Sunly employs around 200 people and is backed by investors including Mirova, Vardar, EBRD, EIB, mBank, and Rivage Investments.