THe BESS will be situated next to Anesco’s High Meadow solar farm. Image: BayWa r.e.

Renewable energy developer BayWa r.e. has been granted planning permission to develop a three-hour duration 171MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in England.

The 57MW BESS facility, dubbed Meadow Farm, will be located in Northeast England on land southeast of The Carss Angling Lakes, Letch Lane, Carlton, Stockton-on-Tees. It is being developed in partnership with Grüne Energien Projekt UG.

Should this project be pursued, the BESS system will be located on 5.72 hectares of land and will help stabilise the local electricity system by providing flexibility and supporting the wider deployment of renewable generation onto the grid.

Its discharge of duration of three hours is notable as most projects in the UK are currently being deployed with a duration of two hours.

Energisation for the BESS is anticipated for late 2026, BayWa r.e. said, and this is expected to be one of the company’s “biggest” in Europe. You can find an image of the site below:

Image: BayWa r.e.

As seen in the image above, the BESS will be located next to Anesco’s High Meadow 2 solar farm, which has a generation capacity of 10MW. Construction of the solar farm started in April 2022.

John Milligan, managing director at BayWa r.e. UK., said: “BESS facilities like Meadow Farm allow flexibility within the national electricity transmission, complementing renewable energy generation profiles. Having successfully secured planning approval for our first stand-alone BESS project in the UK reflects our ongoing dedication and growth in delivering innovative projects.”

BayWa r.e. has also identified several measures to improve local biodiversity, including the planting of native grassland, wildflowers, hedgerows, and trees. These measures are expected to achieve a Biodiversity Net Gain of more than 28% for habitats, and more than 14% for hedgerows, the firm said.

Julian Gerstner, head of storage EMEA at BayWa r.e. said: “We are thrilled to bring our storage capabilities to the next level with our largest stand-alone storage project in the UK to date and one of our biggest in Europe.

“The development of large BESS projects – either connected with renewable energy plants or as stand-alone – demonstrates the full potential of green energy, bringing grid flexibility and stability, as well as contributing significantly to the acceleration of the energy transition.”

In other news, BayWa r.e. confirmed that its 30MWp Bracks Solar Farm in Cambridgeshire entered commercial operation last week. The project consists of 55,000 solar panels and is connected to the grid via an existing overhead cable located approximately 300 metres to the southwest of the site entrance.