United Kingdom Prepares to Launch Its First Large-Scale Battery Facility for Powering Homes, Industries, and Electric Vessels

The UK is set to witness a significant leap in renewable energy storage with the development of the Teesside GigaPark, a 1GW battery energy storage system (BESS) planned by Natpower, a UK startup that forms part of a larger European energy group.

Located on a 32-acre site at Wilton International in Redcar, England, the Teesside GigaPark is poised to become the largest and longest-duration battery storage facility in the UK. With a capacity of 8GWh, it can store enough energy to power over 3 million homes for four hours.

The project, which does not rely on government contracts for funding, is in discussions with energy-hungry industries such as data centres, logistics hubs, and manufacturing plants. The infrastructure of the GigaPark is designed from the ground up to support port electrification, including electric ship propulsion, and will provide shore power, often called cold ironing, to berthed ships.

The Teesside GigaPark aligns with wider political and financial backing for battery storage in the UK. It is expected to save the UK as much as EUR 3.5 billion each year by cutting grid inefficiencies and preventing the waste of clean power.

In terms of job creation, the GigaPark is expected to create 200 construction jobs and launch clean energy training programs for the future workforce. It will also work with local colleges and environmental groups to create job opportunities and clean energy training programs.

The first stage of the Teesside GigaPark will deliver 4 GWh of four-hour storage. This will be scaled up over time to reach a capacity of 8GWh over eight hours. The project includes a 1 GW connection agreement with the UK's National Energy System Operator.

The Labour's National Wealth Fund recently committed EUR 500 million to expand storage capacity nationwide, further boosting the prospects of the Teesside GigaPark. Draft commercial agreements with potential industrial partners for the GigaPark are in progress.

Once completed, the Teesside GigaPark will more than double the capacity and storage duration of any existing site in the UK, marking a significant milestone in the UK's renewable energy storage capabilities.

United Kingdom Prepares to Launch Its First Large-Scale Battery Facility for Powering Homes, Industries, and Electric Vessels