Pivot Power has signed a deal with Wartsila to install another 100MW of battery storage at Coventry and Sandwell in the West Midlands.
The storage systems, which will each have a capacity of 50MW/100MWh, will form part of the 2GW network of “Energy Superhubs” that Pivot Power plans to build across the UK.
They will both be based on the model developed by Pivot Power for its Energy Superhub Oxford – a £41 million project back by funding from UK Research and Innovation, which is partly operational but still undergoing construction.
The batteries will be installed alongside National Grid substations so they can be connected to directly to the transmission network and close to major roads and population centres so they can supply power to electric vehicle (EV) charging stations via private wire.
Construction is expected to begin at Sandwell in the last quarter of this year and at Coventry in first quarter of 2022. The second hub in the planned network of 40 is already under construction at Kemsley in Kent.
Pivot Power chief executive Matt Allen said: “This is the next step in our nationwide rollout of Energy Superhubs which will create the low carbon infrastructure needed to support the EV and renewable energy revolution.
“As part of EDF Renewables, Pivot Power’s purpose is to accelerate a net zero future where clean energy powers our lives. We are working hand in hand with local authorities to help them meet their climate and clean air pledges, so people can live and work in cleaner, more sustainable cities.”
Andy Tang, vice president for energy storage and optimisation at Wartsila, said: “The UK recently set a bold ambition to slash carbon emissions by 78 per cent by 2035 and flexibility is the key to achieving 100 per cent renewables and decarbonising the economy.
“Our energy storage systems are helping leading innovators like Pivot Power turn these ambitions into reality. The enhanced flexibility this project will provide is precisely what we need to accelerate our cost-optimal pathway to 100 per cent clean power.”