Enel X and Threefold Energy partner to maximise the value of commercial batteries
Posted by: electime 21st September 2026
UK businesses running on-site battery storage could see bigger savings while offering the grid greater support at peak times, following a new partnership between Threefold Energy Group and Enel X, the energy flexibility arm of Enel Group.
Under the five-year agreement, Enel X will provide market access and optimisation across Threefold’s Optima platform and its commercial battery portfolio, with Threefold’s assets set to participate in grid services aimed at helping the UK network manage growing pressure on the system.
Enel X will act as Threefold’s exclusive capacity market access and optimisation provider for sites covered by the deal. The first phase centres on an estimated 3.5MW of behind-the-meter capacity, which the companies plan to bring online within 12 months. Longer term, the partners are eyeing a much larger prize: scaling participation across Threefold’s expanding fleet to unlock more than 100MW.
The integration will run through Enel X’s VPP Connect platform, which will optimise Threefold’s Optima-managed batteries across the UK’s grid services market. Crucially, the tie-up is entirely virtual — no extra hardware is required on client sites, and there should be no disruption to how businesses operate day to day.
By enrolling in Enel X’s virtual power plant, Threefold’s batteries become eligible for a wide range of grid and energy market services, with the VPP Connect platform designed to ensure each asset performs at its best moment by moment — directing support to where the grid needs it most.
Luke Gamble, CEO of Threefold Energy, said the partnership builds on the company’s mission to turn commercial sites into intelligent, responsive energy assets. “Our on-site technology automatically controls when electricity is drawn, stored, and used, reducing costs and changing how businesses interact with energy,” he said. “The Enel X partnership lets us keep our customers in greater control of their energy costs, while our batteries deliver the load shifting the grid badly needs, particularly at the distribution level, where constraints are tightest and capacity is needed most.”
He added that behind-the-meter batteries had always been focused on cutting bills and emissions on site, but that working with Enel X would help modernise how that value is captured as the portfolio scales.
An Enel X spokesperson said the deal would extend grid optimisation benefits to smaller, more distributed assets. “The most exciting part is that VPP Connect layers directly onto Threefold Energy’s existing hardware and their Optima platform, meaning we can unlock greater value from an asset with no additional cost to the end user.”
