Root-Power has submitted planning applications for five BESS projects across England, with a combined capacity of 210 MW.
If approved, the proposed projects will be in Reading, Manchester, Lancashire, Rotherham and Rochdale. The largest of these, the Lancashire project, will have an export capacity of 60 MW with a two-hour runtime, with the Reading and Rotherham projects having an export capacity of 50 MW and 40 MW respectively, and the Manchester and Rochdale projects each having an capacity of 30 MW.
Neil Brooks, managing director at Root-Power said: “We are incredibly excited to have submitted five more planning applications in the last month, ensuring Root-Power goes from strength to strength as we look to expand our portfolio of owned and managed battery energy storage projects across the UK Kingdom.
“This latest announcement reflects our continued commitment to innovation and growth. As we continue to expand, we will be able to effect meaningful change toward a more sustainable future. Our market-leading team of industry experts looks forward to developing and expanding our portfolio throughout the remainder of 2024 and into 2025.”
Root-Power on the rise
Despite being a relatively new face to the UK BESS sector, having launched earlier this year as a specialist BESS offshoot of YLEM Energy, Root-Power already has a 2GW portfolio and is rapidly looking to expand.
Last month the company appointed several major planning consultancies to accelerate the delivery of its 40-project pipeline, for which it will continue to submit planning applications for the rest of this year. One of the largest projects in the pipeline, the 100MW/200MWh Granborough Project in Buckinghamshire, has already reached the advanced development stage of the planning process.
In an exclusive article for the sister site of Solar Power Portal Current±, Brooks highlighted the crucial importance of BESS in the UK’s move towards net zero, calling batteries “the most adaptable solution for stabilizing the intermittent nature of wind and solar power generation”.
However, he notes that the BESS sector is not sufficiently supported in the UK energy mix, adding that “to fully realize the benefits of BESS, the UK energy sector must advocate for their value in the energy transition, consumer awareness should increase and push for reform plans to accelerate adoption and encourage investment opportunities.”
