Sizable Energy and NOEL of Reggio Calabria Join Forces to Develop an Innovative Offshore Energy Storage System
New testing campaign at the Natural Ocean Engineering Laboratory (NOEL) of the Mediterranea University of Reggio Calabria: installation of a 50-meter floating subsystem to refine the launch and installation procedures for future plants.
Sizable Energy, an Italian startup developing a long-duration energy storage technology, is launching a new testing campaign at the Natural Ocean Engineering Laboratory (NOEL) of the Mediterranea University of Reggio Calabria, further strengthening its ties with the Calabria region. This marks a fundamental step forward for the young innovative company, which returns to the Strait of Messina to validate, at a pre-industrial scale, a technology designed to make the integration of renewable energy into the electrical grid easier and more cost-effective.
At NOEL, a highly innovative marine engineering operation is taking shape: the installation of floating components assembled into a 50-meter-diameter subsystem, enabling Sizable to refine the deployment and installation methodologies for future commercial offshore pumped-hydroelectric storage plants.
“Returning to Reggio Calabria with a system of this size brings us closer to the commercial phase,” explains Manuele Aufiero, CEO of Sizable Energy. “The synergy with NOEL demonstrates how Italian academic research can become the driving force behind global technological solutions for decarbonization.”
For Sizable Energy, collaboration with the Mediterranea University is crucial. The NOEL laboratory offers world-class expertise in marine engineering and experimental activities within a unique environment: a natural basin where real waves allow marine structures to be tested under scaled yet authentic operating conditions.
“We are very pleased that Sizable Energy has chosen our laboratory for this new pre-commercial experimental campaign,” says Professor Felice Arena, Director of NOEL. “We have been collaborating with Sizable Energy since 2023. We hope to support this project all the way through to the commercial phase, which we would be delighted to see take place right here in Calabria.”
The technology developed by Sizable Energy functions as a large battery for the electrical system. Its operating principle is the same as that of pumped-hydroelectric plants, which have been built in Italy over the past century—primarily in the north—to balance electricity production and consumption and prevent blackouts. This technology was already in use before the growth of wind and solar power and has become even more essential today with the increasing adoption of low-cost but non-dispatchable renewable energy sources.
Unlike traditional pumped-storage facilities, which exploit the elevation difference between mountain reservoirs, Sizable uses the elevation difference between the sea surface and the seabed. Surplus electricity is used to pump a brine solution (denser than seawater) into a floating reservoir. When energy is needed, the fluid is released downward to a second reservoir on the seabed, driving turbines that generate electricity and feed it back into the grid.
The system developed by Sizable is also designed to minimize visual impact from the coast and does not rely on rare or potentially polluting materials. This sustainable and circular approach enhances energy security by improving the integration of renewable energy into the electrical system without harming the landscape or the marine environment.
This new testing phase in the Strait of Messina, developed together with NOEL, strengthens Sizable Energy’s position among the most promising companies in long-duration energy storage and confirms the value of an innovative and sustainable offshore system that has already attracted international attention and confidence.
