Statkraft has been chosen by Warrington Renewables to manage what is claimed to be UK’s largest solar and battery energy storage project.
The 35 MW solar farm and 27 MWh battery storage facility is in York and owned by Warrington Renewables, which is a company wholly-owned by local authority Warrington Borough Council in the northwest of England.
Stakraft said the deal “demonstrates how collaboration between local authorities and market leaders can work together to deliver low carbon, subsidy free renewable power to a wider customer base”.
The York hybrid solar farm has hailed as the UK’s most technically advanced solar project. It is the first utility-scale solar farm in Britain to use both single-axis trackers and bifacial solar panels.
Statkraft optimises the contracted power and flexibility through the use of its virtual ‘Unity’ power platform, which aggregates energy from a network of wind and solar power, flexible gas assets and batteries in the UK, totaling more than 2600 MW installed capacity.
Nick Heyward of Statkraft UK said: “We are delighted to be working with a pioneering local authority to deliver what we do best.
“We had to develop a bespoke hybrid PPA solution to manage the various aspects of the site, reflecting the overall innovation that has gone into the site itself. By optimising the energy storage alongside the renewable energy for Warrington Council we hope to set a blueprint to follow, for other local authorities and partners that are committed about delivering net zero as well as benefiting their communities through revenues from renewable energy.”
He added that agreements “like this will be vital for balancing the UK’s electricity demand and supply as wind and solar power play bigger roles in powering our lives”.
