Developer Intelligent Land Investments (ILI) Group has received planning permission for a 200 MW battery energy storage system (BESS).
The BESS will be adjacent to the Easterhouse substation near Gartcosh, Glasgow, at Whitehill Farm. ILI Group has been granted planning permission under section 36, meaning the BESS is classified as an amendment to the existing consent granted to the generating station.
Ministers’ approval follows support for the project from both Glasgow City Council and North Lanarkshire Council.
ILI Group CEO Mark Wilson said: “This project will provide essential grid balancing services and help maximize the potential of our renewable energy sources.
“The recent decision from Scottish Ministers confirms the crucial role that battery storage will play in our energy transition. As Scotland continues to increase its renewable energy capacity, projects like Whitehill BESS are essential in providing the flexibility and resilience needed to maintain a safe and reliable energy supply.”
ILI Group has a portfolio of more than 4.7 GW energy storage projects, including 2.5 GW utility-scale battery storage and 2.5 GW hydropower plants.
In July, the group submitted a section 36 planning application for a 1.5 GW pumped hydro storage project (PHES), called Balliemeanoch, with a planned connection date of 2031. It will be located in Argyll and Bute and will supply 45 GWh of power, providing it is one of the largest PHES projects in Europe.
Scottish storage developments
Scotland is also home to PHES developments from energy giant Drax, which is currently making plans to build a 600 MW Hollow Mountain power station at Argyll’s highest mountain Ben Cruachan, next to the company’s 440 MW PHES Cruachan station. The two will share the existing upper reservoir, as its 2.4 billion liters of water has sufficient capacity for both.
Several key BESS developments have also recently been approved for planning, with particular success seen by UK energy storage company Apatura. The company will build and operate a 100MW BESS near Dundee, which was approved by ministers without objection by local authority Angus Council.
Apatura’s proposed 700MW BESS for Inverclyde was also approved in September. It will be Scotland’s largest standalone BESS and is the largest Apatura has approved for its 10GW pipeline.
OnPath Energy has thrown its hat into the ring with proposals for a 200MW BESS at Bathgate passing through West Lothian Council’s executive committee without objections. Ministers from the Scottish Government’s Energy Consents Unit will now consider the proposals and decide whether to authorize the project, which is due to be operational by 2031.
