Renewable energy company RES has secured council consent for a 49.9MW battery energy storage system (BESS) set to be developed in Moray, Scotland.
Situated on land adjacent to the Berryburn substation and existing transmission infrastructure, the proposed Corshellach Energy Storage System secured consent for its development from the Moray Council Planning and Regulatory Services Committee. RES applied for planning permission in mid-July.
The BESS will provide grid reliability services by storing energy when generation exceeds demand and then releasing it back onto the network when demand exceeds generation. The duration of the BESS has not been revealed.
The project’s location also means that little additional infrastructure is required to connect it to the grid network, limiting any potential environmental impacts. The construction phase of the project will take approximately 12 months, and RES will employ local contractors and employees.
Commenting on the approval, Mile Amsbury-Savage, development project manager for RES, highlighted the urgency of energy storage deployment to help stabilise the grid and support the aims of the UK government’s newly released Clean Power 2030 Action Plan.
“BESS will be crucial in supporting Scotland’s net-zero emissions target. Just days after the UK government unveiled its Clean Power 2030 Action Plan, we are pleased to welcome Moray Council’s positive decision, which allows Corshellach Battery Energy Storage System to play its part in managing the increasingly complex supply and demand needs,” Amsbury-Savage said.
RES has developed over 830MW of energy storage projects across the UK and Ireland and is currently managing over 600MW of operational storage projects.
As reported by Solar Power Portal yesterday (17 December), the organisation secured an asset management contract for a 70MW solar-plus-storage project near Bristol.
RES already provides operation and maintenance services to the solar PV power plant and has been its asset manager for around a year. It will now also manage the BESS to oversee its operational performance.
In contrast to Moray Council’s acceptance of the BESS development, earlier this year, RES saw Torridge District Council reject a planning application for the proposed 49.9MW Stoneworthy Energy Storage project in Devon.
RES was not the only renewable energy developer facing planning headaches. Low Carbon was previously denied planning permission for a 30MW solar PV plant by Wiltshire Council, with objectors citing concerns surrounding potential harm to local waterways and the location of 50% of the project on the best and most versatile agricultural land.
