Storm, a Belgian wind and storage developer, is installing 106 Tesla Megapack 2XL units at its Langerlo battery park in the port of Genk-Zuid, on the site of a former coal-fired power station. Flemish environment minister Jo Brouns and Genk mayor Wim Dries visited on 22 October. Storm says most units have already arrived and all 106 should be in place by early November. The electrical connection and finishing work come next.
Two parks, one supplier
Langerlo is the smaller of two Storm parks built on old coal-plant sites, and Tesla supplies and installs the batteries for both.
| Langerlo (Genk) | Ruien (Kluisbergen) | |
|---|---|---|
| Power | 100 MW | 200 MW |
| Storage | 400 MWh | 800 MWh |
| Tesla units | 106 Megapack 2XL | 180 |
| Site | About 2 ha | More than 3 ha |
| In service | 2027, grid connection targeted for spring | Autumn 2027 |
Both sit on former coal-plant sites, and Langerlo reuses its plant's high-voltage grid connection. In March, Storm put the cost of the pair at about €330 million. The money comes from Storm, the infrastructure investor TINC, the Flemish investment company PMV and the Belgian Infrastructure Fund I4B, together with seven banks. VRT puts Langerlo alone at about €100 million. Under a June agreement, the utility Eneco will run both parks commercially and operationally for ten years. It will trade their combined 300 MW and 1,200 MWh on the electricity markets.
From coal to storage
Langerlo burned coal and later biomass. According to VRT, its conversion to 100% biomass failed, the plant missed out on a billion-euro Flemish subsidy, and it closed in 2017. The site was dismantled in 2021. Its grid connection is the asset that lasted. The old plant's grounds cover 25 hectares, the mayor told VRT, so the battery park leaves room for employers on the rest.
Storm CEO Jan Caerts told VRT that by 2027 about a third of Belgium's battery capacity will be in the province of Limburg. The province also hosts Green Turtle in Dilsen-Stokkem, which uses 640 Megapack 3 units for 2,800 MWh against Langerlo's 400 MWh.
Why it matters for Tesla
Langerlo is the second European Megapack site to make news this week. On 20 October Bulgaria broke ground on a 300 MWh park of 80 Megapack 2XL units at Tvarditsa. Belgium's two Storm parks add 1,200 MWh, and the Ruien share comes online in autumn 2027. On its third-quarter call, Tesla said it is "almost sold out of all Megapacks for 2027".
Langerlo's batteries will store electricity when there is plenty and release it when demand rises. That is the flexibility a grid with more wind and solar needs. In Limburg and East Flanders, it will come from Tesla hardware on two former coal sites and a former zinc works.