Pivot Power has broken ground on a 50MW battery storage facility in the UK.
The lithium-ion battery project, located in Sandwell in the northwest of Birmingham, will store enough electricity to power over 100,000 homes for two hours once fully operational, Pivot Power said.
The site will connect to the transmission network at National Grid’s Bustleholme substation from which it will automatically charge and discharge to balance supply and demand and manage energy intermittency, the company added.
The Sandwell site forms part of Pivot Power’s Energy Superhub network which is designed to deliver up to 2GW of transmission-connected battery storage and high-volume power connections across the UK.
Once work has been completed on the battery facility, Pivot Power plans to install a private-wire network that will be able to deliver large amounts of power for rapid electric vehicle charging to strategic locations in the local area.
Alongside a similar site in Coventry, which is due to begin construction in early 2022, it will also replicate core elements of the company’s Superhub Oxford project, which combines a 50MW hybrid battery with Europe’s most powerful electric vehicle charging network.
Pivot Power chief executive officer Matt Allen said: “The movement towards zero carbon energy is unstoppable and our technology provides the lynchpin to bring that to scale.
“Renewable energy and battery storage are complementary, interconnected and interdependent – we must have both to achieve net zero.
“Our project at Sandwell will help to create the essential infrastructure for the UK to accelerate net zero.”
Sandwell Council West Bromwich town lead Steve Melia said: “Sandwell Council is committed to supporting renewable energy and empowering our community to live greener, more sustainable lives.
“Pivot Power’s site enables us to reach that goal, helping to support more renewable energy and meet the burgeoning demand for electric vehicle charging.
“The site is at the heart of a vibrant infrastructure area, made up of transport hubs, garages and service stations, and will help to create a more sustainable transport network.”
National Grid Electricity Transmission director of customer connections Roisin Quinn said: “We’re working hard to connect innovative technology such as this Pivot Power project to our network, using new techniques and approaches to ensure they can connect directly to the high voltage system.
“Electricity Storage, especially projects directly connected to the transmission system, can help manage peaks and troughs in demand for electricity – making the electricity system more efficient and keeping costs down for consumers too.”
Pivot Power said that the start of works at the Sandwell site will cap off a busy year which has also seen the activation of two 50MW lithium-ion battery storage systems in Oxford and Kent.
Both systems are directly connected to National Grid’s high-voltage transmission networks and form part of Pivot Power’s plans to deploy up to 40 similar sites throughout the UK, the company added.