Pivot Power seals the deal with Wärtsilä for 100MW of storage

Pivot Power has signed a contract with technology group Wärtsilä for 100MW of storage across two sites.

The two 50MW lithium-ion batteries are to be located at Pivot Power’s first projects in Cowley, Oxford and Kemsley, Kent, which are expected to be completed before the end of the year.

Wärtsilä will support the projects under a 10-year service agreements with flexible performance guarantees, it said.

Pivot placed the order with Wärtsilä in December 2019, and it is the first since Pivot was acquired by EDF Renewables in November 2019.

It marks Wärtsilä’s largest energy storage deal in Europe and its entry to the UK market, although the company has also previously made deals in South East Asia, the Caribbean and Africa.

Adrien Lebrun, engineering director at Pivot Power, said the Wärtsilä energy storage systems allow Pivot to harness “cutting-edge technology to future-proof our investments in a changing energy market” whilst supporting the company’s long term goal of reducing the UK’s carbon footprint.

Wärtsilä’s systems are based on its advanced energy management software platform GEMs, originally developed by Greensmith before the company was acquired by Wärtsilä in 2017.

The GEMS platform leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to enable the intelligent management of large-scale energy storage systems, Wärtsilä said, with its systems also using  the GridSolv modular storage solution, supporting standalone energy storage deployments and integrated hybrids with thermal or renewable generation assets.

Wärtsilä’s solutions are capable of being dynamically adjusted according to the demands of the markets across multiple revenue streams, it said.

Andrew Tang, vice president of energy storage and optimisation at Wärtsilä Energy Business, said: “We believe that a clean energy future for the UK is not just possible, it is deliverable.

“These exciting projects will support a cost-effective, reliable and low-carbon energy system and promote the rapid adoption of clean transport in the UK.”

Pivot Power is currently targeting a 2GW pipeline of energy storage, with the projects to provide flexible capacity to support increased renewable energy generation and electric vehicle charging infrastructure, with Pivot specifically targeting co-location of EV charging and storage.

The company has also had a hand in a number of storage developments in the UK, deploying a battery storage system at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium before partnering with long-duration energy storage technology firm redT for a grid-connected battery hybrid said to be a world first.

Matt Allen, CEO of Pivot Power, recently spoke to Solar Power Portal about Pivot Power's future ambitions, acquistion by EDF and the need for revenue agility.