Glasgow-based RES has so far developed over 700MW of energy storage projects across the UK and Ireland and currently manages over 600MW of operational storage projects. Image: RES.

Renewable energy developer RES has submitted a planning proposal for a battery energy storage system (BESS) project to be located southeast of Newbuildings, y Derry.

The proposal is expected to go before Derry City and Strabane District Council’s planning committee in the next few months and, if approved, take around 12 months to build.

According to planning documents, approximately 64 battery storage enclosures will be installed, providing a maximum of 50MW capacity. The Killymallaght BESS will be 500m north-west of the substation where it is expected to connect and development will cover an area of about 3.88 hectares.

Detailed site surveys have been carried out for Killymallaght, as well as pre-application consultation, to ensure that any potential impact upon the environment, landscape, heritage and local residents is minimised.

According to RES development project manager Peter Deeney, a key point raised in local consultation was the importance of screening the site. Further, given that the area that will be built on is currently used to graze livestock, concerns were raised about food security during the planning process.

Deeney said: “In reality, one of the biggest risks to food security is climate change; energy storage schemes like Killymallaght can enable and accelerate the rollout of renewable energy—directly tackling the effects of climate change.”

Glasgow-based RES has so far developed over 700MW of energy storage projects across the UK and Ireland and currently manages over 600MW of operational storage projects. Throughout 2024, it started planning work at several BESS projects, as well as advancing solar power plant developments.

In September, its proposed 49.9MW storage project in Devon was denied permission, with locals citing too much development in the area and fears around the risk of fire. This was in spite of the fact that neither Natural England, the Environment Agency, nor the local fire service offered any objection to the proposals.

The role of storage

The importance of energy storage in the electrification process was proven recently when the Moyle interconnector tripped while transmitting 442MW of power from Great Britain to Ireland on 30 September.

As Statkraft explained in a post on its website, systems on both sides of the interconnector were able to activate within fractions of a second to stabilise the British and Irish electricity grids. 

BESS is often referenced in relation to curtailment, as a means to prevent the UK National Grid paying generators to switch off when too much energy is causing stress on the transmission network. However, as a group of developers recently flagged in an open letter, the ESO consistently underuses batteries in its efforts to handle energy oversupply.

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