Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners’ 500MW/1GWh Coalburn 1 battery energy storage system, claimed to be the largest operational BESS in Europe, has begun commercial operations in South Lanarkshire, Scotland.
The two-hour facility uses lithium iron phosphate batteries supplied by Canadian Solar subsidiary e-Storage under a contract originally covering 500MW and 1,170MWh of DC capacity. Its SolBank systems incorporate liquid cooling, active cell balancing and multiple levels of fire-safety management.
The Scottish project is located at a former coal-mining site near Glasgow and is connected directly to the electricity transmission network. It is intended to reduce network constraints and allow more Scottish renewable electricity to reach consumers instead of being curtailed.
Nischal Agarwal, partner at Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), said: “The successful delivery of Coalburn 1 marks an important milestone for CIP and our growing European BESS portfolio. As Europe’s largest operational battery energy storage system, Coalburn 1 will enhance the flexibility and resilience of the UK electricity system, support the integration of more renewable power, and contribute to lowering costs for consumers. Alongside Coalburn 2 and Devilla this project demonstrates CIP’s industrial capabilities in developing, commercialising and delivering energy infrastructure at scale.”
CIP reached a final investment decision on the Scottish project in December 2023 and began construction later that year. The investment was reported to exceed £400 million.
In April 2025, CIP agreed to sell a 50% interest in Coalburn 1 to AXA IM Alts, the alternative-investment arm of insurer AXA. CIP retained responsibility for delivering the project and managing it after commissioning.
Coalburn 1 has a ten-year optimisation agreement with SSE Energy Markets. Its contracted revenues also include a 15-year UK Capacity Market agreement covering 300MW and a seven-year agreement covering a further 75MW.
Renewable energy company RES will provide asset-management services for the facility.
Coalburn 1 is the first of three transmission-connected Scottish battery projects developed by CIP to enter commercial operation. The adjacent Coalburn 2 system and the Devilla project in Fife will each provide another 500MW/1GWh.
Collectively, the three LFP systems will offer 1.5GW of power and 3GWh of storage capacity. Coalburn 2 and Devilla are scheduled to begin operating in 2027, with e-Storage contracted to supply approximately 450 SolBank 3.0 containers across those two projects.
Credit: Aggreko
