Delivering energy
security for Solihull

Energy storage facilities use batteries to store excess electricity resulting from periods where the network is effectively over-supplied by existing energy generation sources (mainly from renewable sources such as wind turbines and solar farms who often generate power at times when consumption is low). There are a number of benefits to this. Firstly, it helps to ensure that energy generated does not go to waste. Secondly, it also means that the additional energy can be released into the grid at peak times to satisfy local demand.

The use of energy storage facilities helps to capture energy that would otherwise have been lost, thereby helping to reduce the price of energy generation. This is an increasingly important at a time when we are seeing household energy costs skyrocket. They also play a role in the UK phasing out the use of fossil fuels in energy generation and the increased use of electricity for transport and heating.

Everyone is aware of the need for the UK to do more to address the climate crisis and energy storage facilities play a key role in doing that. The UK is increasingly moving towards renewable energy generation, which will help to deliver on the government’s goal of a net zero economy by 2050. One issue with renewable energy generation is that the power it generates is not constant and it can produce lots of power at times when energy consumption is low. Energy storage facilities help to overcome that. Delivering this site will capture excess energy that would otherwise have been lost, thereby helping to reduce the price of energy generation and providing a stable supply.

It will also help to deliver on the aims of Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, who declared a climate emergency in 2019, as well as the West Midlands Combined Authority goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2041. Given the location of the proposal it will have a positive impact on the local energy network. It will have capacity to provide power to up to 140,000 homes for approximately two hours.

The site is located off Hodgetts Lane adjacent to the existing electricity substation and so is not immediately adjacent to any residential areas.

This will help to ensure that the scheme has a limited impact on those living in the local area.
The scale of the proposals means that there will be minimal visual impact on those living in the local area. The majority of the site buildings are around 2 metres in height with a new substation including electrical plant which is around 5.5 metres high. Coventry Energy Storage is also proposing to retain existing trees along the site boundary whilst installing extensive new planting and fencing to help screen the proposals. Once built, these storage facilities are low maintenance and therefore will not see any noticeable increase in road usage.

There may be questions about the safety of battery storage facilities including perceived fire risks associated with lithium-ion batteries. As with any construction activities, fire risks are considered by the appropriate standards and regulations and battery storage is no different. As part of the planning process, Coventry Energy Storage Limited have produced a layout which adheres to the standards and regulations with appropriate spacing provided between the battery module groups.

The likelihood of any safety issues on this site is therefore low.

Coventry Energy Storage Limited have been undertaking background research and studies at the site and are preparing to submit a planning application to Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council for the site in the coming months. The application will then be subject to a consultation period before a determination hopefully in mid-2023. If planning permission on the site is approved, we anticipate that work would begin in late 2023 and that the site would become fully operational in early 2024.

In terms of construction, we anticipate around 53 two-way movements across the entire construction period (likely to be around 12 months). During operation, the site will be infrequently visited for maintenance.