Technology group Wärtsilä has started work on two further grid-scale energy storage systems with its long-term partner EDF Renewables UK and Ireland (EDF Renewables).
The UK projects will bring a total of 97.5MW/195MWh of energy storage online in the next year.
A 50MW/100MWh ESS in Bredbury, Greater Manchester is scheduled for completion by the close of this year. A 47.5MW /95MWh project in Indian Queens, Cornwall is expected to come online in the first half of 2026.
Once the projects are completed, it will bring the companies total portfolio of projects they’ve delivered together in the UK to eight.
In total, the projects will offer 404.5MW/714MWh of energy storage capacity across the UK to enable the maximisation of renewable power, like wind and solar, while also improving grid reliability.
To date, six out of the facilities are operational. The projects in Wärtsilä’s portfolio with EDF Renewables are:
- A 50MW/100MWh Sundon project in Bedfordshire
- A 57MW/114MWh project in Bramford, Suffolk
- Projects in Cowley and Kemsley, which are 50MW/50MWh each
- Projects in Coventry and Bustleholme which are 50MW/100MWh each.
Under the partnership, Finland firm Wärtsilä has signed long-term service agreements for the Sundon, Bramford, Indian Queens, and Bredbury projects. The agreements guarantee performance levels, backed by a dedicated support team.
Alongside Wärtsilä’s battery energy storage systems, all eight sites are managed by Wärtsilä’s controls and optimisation software, GEMS. GEMS provides data-driven insights for asset management, performance optimisation, and market trading. This will allow EDF to maximise revenue opportunities through grid services such as electricity market trading and frequency response.
Image Wärtsilä’s energy storage system. Credit: Wärtsilä.
