Brawn’s first standalone Extra High Voltage BESS, Helios, marks a significant milestone as the company outlines a pipeline of about 1 GW of HV/EHV assets aimed for commercial operation between 2026 and 2030, with Scott Reinhart highlighting its merchant status.

Construction of Helios began in April 2024, and the asset operates as a 100% merchant BESS participating in Japan’s wholesale, balancing, and capacity markets.

Japan is shifting policy to support storage, including Long-Term Decarbonization Auctions and subsidies to accelerate storage paired with new perovskite solar installations.

Development of Helios was a collaboration among Manoa Energy, Brawn, and HD Renewable Energy Japan under Brawn’s Japan platform.

Dean Cooper, head of Manoa Energy and Brawn COO, emphasizes rapid growth in Japan’s energy storage sector and the strategic importance of battery storage for the country’s energy transition.

Helios is one of Japan’s first fully merchant BESS projects, consisting of 50 MW / 104 MWh using Tesla Megapack 2XL and developed with Brawn and HD Renewable Energy Japan, with HOKKAIDENKO Corporation handling EPC.

Helios is positioned as a merchant BESS set to participate in Japan’s wholesale market at launch, with planned involvement in balancing (2026) and capacity markets later in the decade.

Brawn presents itself as an Asia-Pacific energy-transition-focused investor with over 300 projects, collaborating with DDSP to accelerate decarbonized energy infrastructure across the region.

Helios serves as a true merchant asset, operating without an offtaker and serving as an early test of whether market revenues can sustain utility-scale batteries in Japan.

The asset is classified in Japan as Extra High Voltage (EHV), connecting at and above 22 kV, making Helios an early standalone EHV BESS amid stricter interconnection and protection requirements.

EsG commitments and value creation for stakeholders are highlighted as core themes of the Helios project.

At launch, Helios will trade in Japan’s wholesale market, with balancing market participation expected in 2026 and capacity market participation anticipated later in the decade.