Sungrow has signed a supply agreement with SSE Renewables for a major battery energy storage system (BESS) project in Yorkshire.
Sungrow, a manufacturer of PV inverters and energy storage systems, has agreed to supply SSE Renewables with 320MW/640MWh of PowerTitan liquid-cooled BESS units for its Monk Fryston project in the north of England. Once completed, this project will be connected to the UK electricity grid at the highest voltage level, increasing the flexibility of the electricity grid in the local area.
The PowerTitan units are specially designed to expand grid flexibility. They use specialized “Stem Cell Grid Technology” that allows the BESS to effectively balance grid loads through fast frequency and voltage regulation and dynamic harmonic suppression.
James Li, Director of ESS at Sungrow Europe said: “With the increasing importance of energy storage, Sungrow is continuously improving its energy storage technology to provide customers with efficient, reliable and secure energy storage systems. These systems can effectively and efficiently support grid stability and stimulate further progress in renewable energy sources. PowerTitan’s industry-leading network tracking and grid-forming capabilities also laid the foundation for the successful execution of this project.”
This is not the first time that SSE Renewables and Sungrow have collaborated on a BESS project; Sungrow supplied 136 units for SSE Renewable’s BESS project in Ferrybridge, West Yorkshire, with an installed capacity of 150MW/300MWh. The project, which started construction in August 2023 and will be completed later this year, is three times the size of SSE’s current flagship site in Salisbury, Wiltshire.
Another leap forward for SSE
SSE Renewables has made tremendous progress in the energy storage sector in recent months.
Last week the company announced that exploratory tunneling for its Coire Glas project had been completed, marking a major milestone in Britain’s first large-scale pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) system in four decades.
When completed, the Coire Glas storage development will have an installed capacity of 1,300 MW and be capable of delivering 30 GWh of long-term electricity storage.
SSE Renewables is also developing another PHES project in Loch Fearna, Scotland. The 1.8 GW Loch Fearna project has already received a grid connection offer for 1.795 GW and is expected to commence commercial operation in mid-2030.