The BESS will provide grid stabilising functions. Image: Balance Power.

Energy developer Balance Power has today (24 September) secured planning approval for a 99MW/99MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in Iron Acton, south Gloucestershire.

Balance Power is still finalising the construction timeline for the 1-hour duration BESS, but it emphasised that the company has ongoing discussions with National Grid to advance the 100MW grid connection date, which is currently set at June 2036.

The BESS, located around nine miles northeast of Bristol, will provide grid stability by supplying energy during periods of peak demand. Balance Power confirmed that the energy stored would be renewable, contributing to the wider decarbonisation of the grid.

The Iron Acton Grid Supply Point (GSP) network currently has 120MW of solar PV and wind energy connected, with an additional 750MW of solar PV connections planned.

Oliver Pettersen, connections manager at Balance Power, stated that the project will be “pivotal” in managing excess power generation produced from the variable renewable energy generation projects in the vicinity.

“With extensive solar development in the Iron Acton area, this project will be pivotal for managing excess power generation and more broadly for balancing out the supply and demand of renewable energy, helping to reduce dependency on fossil fuels,” Pettersen said.

“Due to the size and scale of the project, it also marks a big step forward for the UK’s transition to net zero, which depends upon battery storage projects that provide stability for a decarbonised grid. We’re grateful for the support from South Gloucestershire and the community – it’s due to our collective efforts and close collaboration that we’ve reached this brilliant outcome.”

The planning approval for the BESS comes as Balance Power recently secured a £5.1 million debt facility from investment manager Triple Point to boost Balance’s solar PV and BESS pipeline. Part of the funding was used to acquire the 6MWp Roborough project from Regener8 Power, located in Plymouth, Devon.

Grid connections continue to dampen net zero ambitions

Several ries have experienced challenges with their grid connection queues, as many new renewable energy projects are brought online, and the UK is no exception. According to ESO, the transmission connections queue has grown by more than 275GW since October 2022 and has grown at an average of over 20GW a month for the last 12 months.

Indeed, this recently saw market consultancy Cornwall Insight brand gaining timely grid connections as the “greatest challenge in the rollout of renewable energy in the UK”.

The ESO also anticipates that the total queue, across transmission and distribution, will likely exceed 800GW by the end of 2024, over four times the installed capacity the organisation believes is needed by 2050.

This is why ESO has proposed the ‘First Ready, First Connected’ approach for new applications and existing projects in the queue.

ESO proposed a two-step process for new applications, with an annual application window to reach ‘Gate 1’ and “readiness” criteria to reach ‘Gate 2’. Only projects meeting the Gate 2 criteria will have a queue position.

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