Renewable fund manager Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) has progressed two battery energy storage system (BESS) developments in Scotland that will have a combined capacity of 1GW.
Through its flagship fund CI IV, CIP has made a financial investment decision (FID) and notice to proceed with the construction of the 500MW/1000MWh Coalburn 2 BESS in South Lanarkshire, adjacent to the existing Coalburn 1 BESS, and the Devilla BESS of the same size in Fife.
E-STORAGE, part of CSI Solar, the majority subsidiary of Canadian Solar, has signed contracts for both BESS projects, which are expected to begin construction in 2027. The global energy storage solutions provider will supply and integrate approximately 450 SolBank 3.0 battery containers across the two projects and, under a long-term services agreement with CIP, will also support the facilities’ long-term performance and operational management of the projects.
Once commissioned, the BESS developments will become Europe’s largest battery storage projects.
Scottish First Minister John Swinney and Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy Gillian Martin visited the Coalburn 2 site to mark the step forward for the project. Swinney said: “The construction of the two largest battery systems in Europe, in South Lanarkshire and Fife, delivered through international investment, should be welcomed as a major contribution to the growth of Scotland’s energy transition infrastructure.”
CIPs UK investments
CIP manages twelve different funds and says it is investing in more than 30 GW of renewable energy infrastructure in Britain, representing more than £15 billion in future investment potential. In April 2024, it announced the £250 million acquisition of a majority stake in UK solar company Elgin Energy to deliver a 15 GW portfolio through the CI IV fund.
In February 2022, CIP’s CI IV fund partnered with Alcemi, a large-scale BESS developer, to develop a UK portfolio of BESS projects for FID. The milestones for Coalburn 2 and Devilla come about a year after FID was achieved for the Coalburn 1 BESS, which is also supplied by e-STORAGE. Alcemi received a building permit for the two newest BESS in February last year.
The balance of installation and electrical services has been contracted by H&MV Engineering for Coalburn 2 and by the OCU Group for Devilla.
Once all three BESS developments come online, CIP’s BESS portfolio in Scotland will have a total power capacity of 1.5 GW and be able to supply 3 GWh of electricity to the grid. Nischal Agarwal, partner at CIP, noted the importance of the location for BESS projects such as these in achieving the 2030 clean energy goals.
James Forster, Alcemi development director, commented: “The partnership between CIP and Alcemi has gone from strength to strength and has evolved into what both companies envisioned. We are proud to be a key part of CIP’s growth to become the UK’s largest battery storage investor. We look forward to continuing to collaborate and realize more strategic projects that will enable a clean energy system by 2030.”
