Europe’s largest battery, located between Inverness and Aberdeen, is now operational. The site has been deliberately placed to address grid congestion caused by nearby offshore wind farms.
The Blackhillock site can power more than 3.1 million homes for two hours, making it a significant step towards securing renewable energy in the UK. The battery will provide stability services to the National Energy System Operator (NESO), ensuring that renewable power is more reliable and secure.
Wärtsilä has supplied its quantum energy storage system technology and SMA grid forming inverters to enable a resilient power system with high power quality. EDF Energy will trade power from the battery using its Powershift platform, while Kraken, an Octopus Energy company, manages the BESS.
The project is expected to save consumers over £170 million in 15 years, reduce CO2 emissions by 2.6 million tonnes, and support the UK’s goal of achieving zero carbon operation of its national electricity network by 2025. Zenobē, a company founded by James Basden, has made significant progress in battery storage, adding over 30% to Scotland’s operational capacity.
The launch of Blackhillock marks a critical juncture in Britain’s clean power journey and demonstrates the importance of battery storage in enabling the transition to renewable energy.
Source: https://www.edie.net/europes-largest-battery-located-in-uk-begins-operations