Vattenfall in discussions over adding grid-scale battery storage at existing UK solar PV farms

LinkedIn
Twitter
Reddit
Facebook
Email
Vattenfall has already boasted of co-location success with its hybrid Parc Cynog energy park in Wales. Image: Vattenfall.

Electricity and heat generator and retailer Vattenfall is developing a third party model for energy storage deployment, which will see the Swedish firm deploy batteries alongside UK solar farms.

As the company prepares to deliver its first battery storage project in the UK at the Pen y Cymoedd wind farm in Wales early next year, Vattenfall recently revealed that it is already in talks with a number of solar farm owners.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Enjoy 12 months of exclusive analysis

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Annual digital subscription to the PV Tech Power journal
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

However, the Swedish state-backed company is finding that a number of solar farm owners are holding on to the additional capacity on their grid connections, originally intended for additional solar build-out under the Renewables Obligation (RO).

With this subsidy now closed, some are thought to be overstating the value of the capacity – effectively now a stranded asset – in an attempt to maximise any potential offer or revenue from Vattenfall or companies like it seeking to develop energy storage.

Still some miles left to be run in UK solar and wind’s ‘cost game’

The model taps into Vattenfall’s development approach of co-locating new projects with existing assets to leverage their grid connection. The company has already praised the potential of co-locating solar with wind after its Parc Cynog site showed good performance within its first 18 months.

However Gunnar Groebler, senior vice president of Vattenfall’s wind business division, explained to our UK sister site Solar Power Portal recently that changes to solar subsidies in Britain, mainly in the form of cuts, meant it was difficult to develop further solar projects.

“[The UK] is not the prime country for solar PV, even with the shared infrastructure the business case is not adding up,” he said.

“It's a cost game… it's going to be difficult unless costs come down further. I think they have come down both on solar and wind dramatically but we're not there yet on a fully merchant project.”

This has led to the developer turning its head to energy storage and while negotiations continue with existing solar farms, Vattenfall is also investigating using the additional capacity of onshore substations built for its offshore wind farms as a route to deployment for its own new energy storage projects.

The company has also entered plans for a new battery project to be located at the Ray wind farm in Northumberland into pre-qualification for the next capacity market auction.

“The co-use of infrastructure is for sure something we're going to continue with, not only in the UK but across the entire portfolio,” Groebler added.

 In related news, developer Anesco was recently told that three of its large-scale solar farms in Britain would retain its existing financial support under the RO after the retrofit of energy storage systems at the 5MW sites, while the same company recently also unveiled Britain's first subsidy-free solar farm – part of the value proposition for which is based around its co-location with battery energy storage, which would help the facility earn additional revenue streams.

23 September 2025
Warsaw, Poland
The Energy Storage Summit Central Eastern Europe is set to return in September 2025 for its third edition, focusing on regional markets and the unique opportunities they present. This event will bring together key stakeholders from across the region to explore the latest trends in energy storage, with a focus on the increasing integration of energy storage into regional grids, evolving government policies, and the growing need for energy security.
1 October 2025
Asia
By 2026, the Asia-Pacific region is forecast to contribute 68% of the projected $10.84 billion market. Over the past decade, Asia has fortified its grids with batteries that enable smart grids, renewable integration, responsive electricity markets, and ancillary services. In this rapidly evolving landscape, Energy Storage Summit Asia is your guide to this burgeoning market. Now in its second year, the Summit gathers independent generators, policymakers, banks, funds, offtakers, and cutting-edge technology providers and clarifies what successful energy storage procurement and deployment strategies look like. Topics covered include macro-level policy, supply chain dynamics, financing strategies, co-location considerations, safety measures, microgrid insights and more.

Read Next

Premium
July 1, 2025
As US Senators vote on the tax reconciliation bill, experts Jessica Dunn of Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) and Tonja L. Wicks of esVolta discuss its potential impact.
June 30, 2025
Samsung C&T has submitted plans for a 100MW/400MWh BESS to Australia’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.
June 27, 2025
The US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Electricity (OE) has announced funding of up to US$15 million for three storage technologies.
June 26, 2025
A new partnership aims to deploy an integrated solution combining solar PV with sodium-ion batteries at commercial and industrial (C&I) sites in Southeast Asia.
Premium
June 25, 2025
Intersect Power has become the latest player in the energy storage space to feel the adverse effects of tariff increases and policy uncertainty.

Most Popular

Email Newsletter