NEC Energy Solutions has completed six new grid-tied energy storage systems for distributed network operator (DNO), Northern Powergrid.
The installations were completed as part of a three-year trial of smart grid solutions and were part funded through UK energy regulator Ofgem’s Low Carbon Networks Fund.
In total, the six lithium-ion batteries represent around 2.9MW of power capacity and 5.7MWh of storage. The storage systems were installed at substations in both rural and urban locations.
The largest system installed under the project is a 5MWh system which is located in an industrial area in Darlington, in north-east England. The smallest installation is a 50kW system located in a residential area in Wooler, also in the north-east.
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Commenting on the new storage capacity, Ian Lloyd, CLNR technology manager for Northern Powergrid, said: “Part of the challenge of installing energy storage in these areas was the wide diversity in the various sites. We needed battery systems that could fit into a range of electricity distribution substations, so it was important to have a very flexible battery design to accommodate our very different locations.”
NEC Energy Solutions claims that it had to tailor its storage installations specifically for each site. Four of the six batteries had to be packaged in different enclosures, ranging from 40-foot containers to smaller customised enclosures with the final two installations retrofitted directly into buildings.
Northern Powergrid is an electrical distribution company that, along with eight other independent DNOs, operates electricity transmission network infrastructure in Britain. The company serves around 3.9 million customers.
“This project enables distribution network operators in the UK to implement new technologies designed to increase energy efficiency and support the adoption of clean energy, which represents an excellent opportunity to showcase the flexibility of our products,” said Bud Collins, CEO of NEC Energy Solutions.
Pictured is a storage project by NEC in Chiaravelle, Italy. Image: NEC Corporation.
A time-lapse video taken as one of the systems provided by NEC Energy Solutions was installed.
