Project description
The project site is located in a field adjacent to the East Coast railway line near Linkshead Farm and was chosen for its unobtrusive location and proximity to Scottish Power’s Branxton Substation with its future connections to the national grid and large windfarms offshore in the North Sea.
The facility will consist of rows of three meter high shipping-like containers which house the batteries along with high voltage transformers, electrical switchgear equipment and a single storey control building to interface the facility via underground cable to the nearby Scottish Power Branxton substation.
The Branxton Energy Storage Facility will help Scotland to meet national and strategic targets for renewable energy and a net-zero grid.
Site location
Site layout
Battery Storage
Purpose of battery storage technology
There is a clear requirement to balance the peaks and troughs associated with electricity supply and demand to manage the strain on distribution networks and ensure there are no power blackouts. This is particularly important as older generating plants are decommissioned. The battery storage function of the Branxton Energy Storage Facility stores energy imported from the electricity grid and then uses this stored energy at a later time to help smooth over peaks and troughs in the electricity supply. The facility is able to respond at extremely short notice (less than one second) to requests from National Grid to supply power, in particular for periods when renewable sources are not generating or fossil fuel plants are unexpectedly offline.
Battery storage
The batteries themselves will be lithium-ion and will be securely containerised in a shipping-like container. Battery storage technology is continually being improved and as a result meach of the different equipment manufacturers have their own product offerings which vary in terms of physical size, power and energy storage. Typically, each container can hold between 0.5 MW–6 MW capacity depending on the duration of energy storage that is required and the manufacturer.
Typical battery storage container
Safety, Security, Fencing and Lighting
Given the high voltage electrical equipment installed with the project the site requires secure fencing surrounding all project equipment and a palisade fence of up to three meter height is proposed. Security cameras and motion-activated lighting will cover the facility meaning that under normal conditions the project will have no visible night-time illumination.
