Japanese telco and data center firm NTT has launched its own energy storage plant services division.

NTT Anode Energy, NTT’s smart energy division, will construct the energy storage systems on behalf of NTT’s customer base.

NTT Anode aims to leverage its experience in developing and operating its battery energy storage system (BESS) assets. The company currently has a portfolio of 340MWh across 23 locations, in nine of Japan’s regional electricity grid service areas.

The firm has significantly expanded its footprint in the Japanese market over recent months, following the successful commissioning of three BESS systems in Saitama Prefecture, just north of Tokyo.

The latest additions include the Saitama Wako Storage Battery, a 1MW/5MWh system that commenced operations in January; the Saitama Miyoshi Power Storage Plant, with a capacity of 2MW/10MWh, launched in April; and the Saitama Tsurugashima Power Storage Plant, also a 2MW/10MWh facility, which became operational earlier this month.

NTT Anode will manage the newly operational assets by aggregating and optimizing their participation in Japan’s energy markets. This includes trading in the wholesale market, engaging in supply-demand balancing initiatives, and contributing to capacity services.

Established in 2019, NTT Anode Energy aims to develop and deliver energy solutions utilize NTT Group's expertise in IT systems and power technologies.

NTT has a substantial footprint across the APAC region. In January, it committed more than $10 billion to developing its data center business through to 2027. Following this, it has acquired two parcels of land in Tochigi and Osaka, Japan, to develop four data centers with a combined capacity of 136MW.

Other recently announced data center projects in the region include a 290MW facility in Johor, Malaysia, and a 400MW AI data center in Hyderabad, India.

In addition, earlier this month, NTT revealed plans to take NTT Data private in a 2.37 trillion yen ($16.4 billion) deal.