Green Switch Capital, part of the Qair Group, has announced that it has protected a building permit for the first independent Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project.
The Middleton Farm Energy Storage Facility has a capacity of 49.9 MW and will be on about 1.3 hectares of land on Middleton Farm, near Potterdown, Aberdenshire. After an extensive planning process in which Green Switch Capital was supported by Locoge, AberDeenshire Council on 1 July approval for the project.
To reduce the visual impact of the development, the Bess units are painted green so that they can merge into the surrounding landscape. In addition, a considerable amount of improvements of biodiversity will be completed on site, including planting tree and scrub to improve habitats for local animals in the wild. The developer has not stated when it expects the construction of the project to start or when it expects the Middleton Farm Bess to be connected to the British electricity grid.
Pete McLaren, head of the Scottish development at Qair UK, said that the project is a “milestone for Qair UK” as the company expands to independent energy storage. He added: “Battery storage is crucial to unlock the full potential of renewable energy sources in the UK, and we are proud to contribute to a more resilient and flexible energy system.”
Although this is the first permitted independent storage project of QAIR UK, the company has secured the building permit for more than 140 MW of PV energy plants in the past 18 months. These include the Stromen Hadley Solar Farm, a 49.9 MWP Solar PV energy plant in Buckinghamshire for which the building permit was granted in December last year.
Before that, September 2024 saw an important planning profit, because the company insured the planning installation for the Lark Hill Solar Farm. The building permit for the development of 49.95 MW was granted by Rochford District Council, which is located on 66 hectares of land near Caneewdon, Essex.
At the end of August last year, Qair UK acquired a considerable part of the majority in Green Switch Capital. Green Switch Capital currently has a development frame of more than 15 GW, with his first projects that are expected to be put into use in the year 2026. Qair has a worldwide operational solar pipeline of more than 450 MW, with a specialty in Agrivoltaics (AGRIPV), in which solar energy generation and agricultural activities, including sheeps are led on the same country.
