SSE Renewables has taken ownership of a 120MW/240MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) project under development in the Irish Midlands.
SSE Renewables acquired the project development rights for the Thornsberry BESS, an approved project to be located in County Offaly, from Grid Systems Services, a BESS developer owned by Low Carbon. The company did not disclose the cost of the acquisition.
The project has already agreed a grid connection offer that will allow the completed BESS to import and export 120 MW to Ireland’s national grid via a local 110 kV substation. Depending on a final investment decision from SSE Renewables, the project could be operational by the end of the decade.
SSE Renewables has been expanding its BESS portfolio in the Emerald Isle of late, with the company now owning a 300MW BESS pipeline on the island of Ireland. In May this year, SSE Renewables acquired the 100MW/200MWh Derrymeen BESS, based in Northern Ireland, which is expected to come online in 2026. The company also has BESS projects under development in County Mayo, which will host an 80MW BESS, and County Kerry, where SSE plans a 100MW development.
Heather Donald, director of Onshore Wind, Solar and Battery for Britain and Ireland at SSE Renewables, called the acquisition “a major step forward” in the company’s plans to expand its Irish BESS portfolio. Donald added: “The Midlands has a long and proud tradition of supporting Ireland’s energy security. With the development of new onshore wind, solar and battery projects such as Thornsberry, the region can continue to play an important role in delivering homegrown energy to Irish consumers, while decarbonising the country’s energy system.”
The Irish BESS market
Although still relatively small, the Irish BESS sector is rapidly emerging, with some significant technical developments and an increased number of projects.
Statkraft is currently developing Ireland’s first 4-hour grid-scale BESS, a 20 MW project co-located with Statkraft’s own 55.8 MW Cushaling wind farm. This development is also located in County Offaly and is currently under construction.
Exciting new BESS technology could soon be making its way to Irish shores. FuturEnergy has chosen Ireland as the location for what, if approved, will be Europe’s first iron-air BESS. Iron-air batteries are an extremely new technology, but one that is throwing the energy industry into turmoil; Form Energy, which will supply Ireland’s iron-air BESS, has received a raft of financing offers from the US government for projects in California, West Virginia, And New Yorkas described on our sister site Energy storage news.
The large number of data centers in Ireland – 82 are currently operational, with 14 more under construction and planning permission has been granted for a further 40 – makes the country well positioned for BESS developments capable of storing the vast amount of energy that these centers need. GridBeyond recently announced that it will supply BESS for two data centers in Ireland owned by Keppel DC REIT. One location will receive two 2 MW/2.2 MWh BESSs, while the other will be equipped with a 4 MW/6.1 MWh BESS.
