UK-based energy storage investor-developer Pivot Power is to develop 100MW / 200MWh of battery storage split across two sites in the West Midlands region of England in partnership with energy technology provider Wärtsilä.
A 50MW lithium-ion battery storage system which will form part of a transmission system-connected ‘Energy Superhub’ has been commissioned in Oxford, England, while another 100MW transmission-connected project in the country has reached financial close and is set to begin construction soon.
Jan Andersson, market development manager at Wärtsilä, explores the need for large-scale energy storage solutions to aid the proliferation of electric vehicles and their necessary charging infrastructure.
Enabling longer duration storage and non lithium-ion technology, what to do with the storage capabilities of electric vehicles and how the industry is overcoming regulatory hurdles were all key topics discussed at this year’s Energy Storage Summit in London.
Pivot Power is keeping an eye on solutions other than lithium-ion, but chief executive Matt Allen stressed the need to focus on the now and deploy chemistries that are “ready and investable”.
Pivot Power is to keep a watching brief on changing planning regulations pertaining to energy storage in the UK, opening up the developer to increasing the capacity of some projects within its portfolio.
