A major energy company has given final investment approval for a battery storage project in the UK. This will be the first commercial battery storage asset for Equinor, which is working with the UK’s Noriker Power.

The Blandford Road project is planned to be a 25 MW / 50 MWh battery storage facility located in Dorset in southern England. The project is expected to incorporate lithium-ion battery racks and connect to the distribution network run by energy retailer SSE

A spokesperson for Equinor said the project would provide “capability to manage power intermittency, balance supply and demand and deliver grid services to SSE and the National Grid […] The project will start construction in January 2023 and is expected to be operational in Q3 of the same year.”

Equinor acquired a 45% ownership share in Noriker Power in December 2021.

Speaking in early October, Olav Kolbeinstveit, senior vice president for power and markets within renewables at the company said, “[We aim] to create a profitable renewables business by integrating battery storage assets in our portfolio in selected power markets. During the last 10 months we invested in two leading battery storage development companies, Noriker Power in the UK, and East Point Energy in the US. Today we took the next step and sanctioned our first commercial battery storage project.”

Ingrid Fossgard-Moser, vice president for energy storage development added, “We expect to sanction up to three battery storage projects in the country during the next 6-9 months.”