The 200-megawatt (MW) / 400-megawatt hour (MWh) energy storage system provided by Wärtsilä to owner and operator Zenobē in Blackhillock, Scotland, has now gone live. The Blackhillock project is the largest battery energy storage site currently in operation in Europe and is the first project delivered under the Network Options Assessment (NOA) Stability Pathfinder programme. The programme is an initiative promoted by the National Grid Electricity System Operator (NESO) in Scotland to improve the long-term stability of the electricity system. Owned and operated by Zenobē, a grid-scale battery storage specialist, the system will assist grid operators in the management of challenges related to balancing supply and demand, power stability, and constraints.
The Blackhillock site will be the first in the world to provide stability services to the NESO, making renewable power more reliable and secure. The stability services include short-circuit level and true synthetic inertia, which are essential for the grid to function efficiently as the UK moves towards phasing out fossil fuel power plants. The system will enhance the reliability of the UK’s growing renewable power system and help reduce consumer bills nationwide. According to Zenobē, the site is expected to save consumers over £170 million over the next 15 years.
“Our batteries at Blackhillock are the first to use advanced power electronics to enable a much higher uptake of renewable power on the grid. This dramatically reduces costs to consumers and increases reliability. Zenobē is the first to deliver this capability at scale and we are helping the UK to become more competitive through increasing the availability of clean, affordable power,” states James Basden, Founder and Director, Zenobē.
The Blackhillock site is ideally suited to integrate wind power from three major nearby offshore wind farms in the North Sea, thereby helping address grid congestion. The system balances supply and demand to ensure the country’s abundant wind generation is not wasted, supporting the UK government’s mission to have a net zero power grid by 2030. Based on Zenobē’s calculations, the project will prevent approximately 2.6 million tonnes of CO₂ from entering the atmosphere over the next 15 years as it will be integrating more wind power into the transmission network.
Alongside Wärtsilä’s Quantum battery energy storage system, the Blackhillock site is using the sophisticated GEMS Digital Energy Platform, allowing Zenobē to remotely monitor and operate the equipment. GEMS eases network constraints by importing electricity at times of peak renewable generation. Its data-based intelligence will enable Zenobē to participate in the most valuable UK electricity markets.
“As Britain increases its reliance on renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, systems like Blackhillock will ensure that excess power can be stored and then used during times of increased demand. Blackhillock sets a new standard and plays a pivotal role in balancing the grid and supporting the UK’s path to 100% renewables,” states Andrew Tang, Vice President of Wärtsilä Energy Storage & Optimisation.
Wärtsilä is supplying a second project to Zenobē, Kilmarnock South, also delivered under the Stability Pathfinder programme. Kilmarnock South is a 300 MW / 600 MWh storage system built with Wärtsilä’s Quantum High Energy storage system and is expected to be operational by the end of 2025.
