Work Starts on Biggest U.K. Project to Use Tesla Batteries
Work Starts on Biggest U.K. Project to Use Tesla Batteries
(Bloomberg) -- Work will start this month on the biggest energy storage project in Britain to use giant Tesla Inc. batteries.
The Contego project, in southeast England, will be made up of 28 Tesla megapack batteries that can store energy from renewable sources to be used at times of peak consumption. The 34-megawatt plant will be one of the U.K.’s largest energy storage plants when it’s due for completion in 2021.
The U.K. has committed to delivering a huge offshore wind program by 2030. Integrating 40 gigawatts of intermittent wind generation will need a boom in battery storage to help harness excess energy and transmit electricity when needed.
The plant in West Sussex, southeast England is being developed by Fotowatio Renewable Ventures BV and Harmony Energy Ltd. It’ll be the second project using Tesla batteries by these companies. The first, a 7.5 megawatt project in Dorset, southwest England, started in June and is providing balancing services to the U.K. grid.
“There is real momentum in the development of subsidy-free, utility scale battery storage in the U.K. as we continue the shift toward a greener economy,” Peter Kavanagh, chief executive of Harmony Energy, said.
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