Tewkesbury Borough Council has granted planning permission for Exagen to build a 20MW/40MWh battery storage facility within the Cheltenham and Gloucester Green Belt.
Brockworth Road Energy Reserve is a battery energy storage system (BESS) with an export capacity of approximately 20MW and a duration of two hours. It is Exagen’s second battery energy storage project to receive planning consent this year and will be located just north of the A417.
The 5.7-acre site is well-screened by existing trees and hedgerows, and the battery storage facility will be housed in modular units painted green to minimise visual impact.
Projects like Brockworth Road help reduce UK reliance on imported gas and provide energy security. Batteries play a key role in decarbonising the grid, enabling the integration of more intermittent renewable energy sources.
Battery storage is also required to meet the increasing demand for electricity due to the widespread electrification of transport and heat.
Strong evidence for development in the Green Belt was presented, and the selection of the site was justified. Exagen said councillors appreciated the special circumstances the project delivers, weighing against limited change to the Green Belt.
The project promised a 37% biodiversity net gain owing to wildflower meadow planting, hedgerow improvements, and new tree planting to enhance site screening.
Three previously developed or brownfield alternatives were considered, as were 6 greenfield, non-Green Belt alternative sites; however, all were assessed as unsuitable due to policy constraints, other allocations or planning consents.
A period of public consultation was conducted in June and July 2023, during which Exagen amended the planning application to reduce its overall footprint and change the site orientation to minimise visual impact.
Exagen continues to expand its current pipeline of projects in development, supported by funding from the Octopus Energy Development Partnership, part of Octopus Energy Generation, which has a minority stake in Exagen Group.
The company aims to establish a rolling output, securing planning permission and entering construction for 500MW of UK sites, year-on-year.
Ben Fawcett, commercial and development director of Exagen Group said: ‘’Planning consent for the Brockworth Road Energy Reserve is a huge achievement for the team at Exagen. A planning consent for this project is a testament to both Tewkesbury Borough Council’s and the local community’s commitment to meeting the UK’s net zero goal.”