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Statkraft is at the heart of the UK’s energy transition. Since 2006, Statkraft has gone from strength to strength in the UK, building experience across wind, solar, hydro, storage, grid stability, EV charging, green hydrogen and a thriving markets business.

Statkraft is a global company in energy market operations, more than 7,000 employees in over 20 countries.  

We’ve invested over £1.4 billion in the UK's renewable energy infrastructure and facilitated over 4.3 GW of new-build renewable energy generation through Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). 

Across our UK businesses we employ nearly 500 staff in England, Scotland and Wales and play a key role in helping the global business reach its goal of 9 GW of developed wind and solar power by 2025.

Read more about Statkraft UK.

Greener Grid Parks are facilities comprised of zero carbon technologies which stabilise the grid, allowing more renewable energy to be transmitted through the network. Keeping the grid stable means ensuring the amount of electricity flowing through the grid always remains level.

They are not a wind farm or solar farm, but are a collection of buildings which look similar to agricultural barns, warehouses and shipping containers. These buildings house large machines with built-in flywheels to provide grid stability without emitting any carbon dioxide.

Ultimately these improvements will increase the amount of renewable energy we can use and reduce our energy bills.

National Grid Energy Systems Operator (NGESO) have identified Norfolk as an area which requires more grid stabilisation due to the amount of renewable energy being generated across the UK. This was further narrowed down to Necton substation based on the timescales allowed for connecting to the grid and the substations that had physical space for a new connection.

The specific location was identified through a careful assessment of the area and consultation with technical specialists about subjects such as landscape and ecology. In addition, there is a need to be located very close to the substation to reduce the size of the high-voltage cable infrastructure and maximise the grid stabilisation function of the Greener Grid Park. 

At Necton, the close proximity to the substation avoids lengthy transmission cables and ensures an efficient connection to the grid whilst minimising environmental disturbance and cost. 

Alongside the above- ground development, the below- ground cable route is a significant part of the overall proposed infrastructure. There are a number of reasons for minimising the length of the cable connection. These include but are not limited to:         

• Electrical efficiency and responsiveness
  • Reducing cable losses
• Environmental disruption  
  • Reducing disturbance to agricultural land, hedgerows and other environmental feature
• Infrastructure disruption
  • Reducing interaction with roads, overhead lines and drainage systems
• Financial viability of the project is crucial to being able to provide the service
  • Reducing the scale of the construction 

Statkraft’s proposed cable route at Necton is 380m long (300m goes through land within the existing substation and 80m goes through agricultural land)  The importance of locating the Greener Grid Park (GGP) near the Substation means that a maximum cable length of 600m was considered. This is in line with Statkraft’s other GGP sites. 

Our updated design includes a significant increase in the depth of the triangular landscape buffer. At its narrowest point, the buffer depth has doubled from 7m to 14m deep and at its deepest point it has more than trebled from 12m to 42m deep. The buffer will include an appropriate mix of over 500 trees and shrubs that will be up to 3m high when planted and are expected to be up to 7.7m high by year 15. 

We have also progressed the drainage design so that there will be no increase in the runoff rate of surface water compared to the current situation. This includes use of an “attenuation basin” located on site, which safely stores excess rain and storm water.

An important consideration is that we meet the requirements of the National Grid Electricity System Operator (NGESO). They have contracted our services to help stabilise the grid at Necton. The design process is complex, and we have been exploring different ways in which we can deliver this service. This has included options to use only batteries or synchronous compensators, or a combination of both. A combined scheme was presented at our public exhibition.  

The design has evolved to a point where the needs of NGESO’s grid stabilisation requirements can be met with two synchronous compensators alone. As a result, we are now progressing Necton Greener Grid Park without battery storage.

This is reflected in the revised layout which can be found here.

Given the rural context of Necton Greener Grid Park, bright and bold colours are not suited to this development and muted shades would create a more recessed appearance. Three recessive colours, brown, light green and dark green, have been selected to be applied to buildings within the proposed development. The taller  High-Inertia Synchronous Compensator building and the other, smaller Synchronous Compensator building proposed would be painted dark green to match the adjacent vertical field boundaries such as the mixed woodland and hedgerows. Low- lying buildings, such as the site offices, stores and fences would be suited to any of the recessive colours noted above. 

In addition, proposed trees and shrub planting (approximately 5,000m² to the western, southern and eastern site boundaries will aid in screening the proposals from Necton. Lighting will also be implemented along the boundary fence, but to avoid light pollution, this will be provided via 6m high columns with downward-facing, motion- sensitive lighting. 

A Greener Grid Park is usually comprised of a few buildings next to an existing electricity substation. If you were passing it, and you didn’t know, you’d probably think it was an agricultural building, a storage unit, or a shipping container. 

During construction, we will work to keep noise levels from the site to a minimum. We will follow all conditions imposed on construction activities if our application is successful. The noise levels will stay below the level which is set out by the council in the planning permission, and we will only work within the set hours allowed by the Local Planning Authority. 

Yes. We have two Greener Grid Parks operating in Keith, Moray  and at Lister Drive in Liverpool. Contracts were awarded under Stability Pathfinder Phase 1 by National Grid Electricity Systems Operator (NGESO), and the technology used in these projects are synchronous compensators. We have also won contracts from NGESO under Stability Pathfinder Phases 2 and 3 for synchronous compensators in Swansea Wales and two grid-forming battery projects (GFC-BESS) at Coylton and Neilston - which is under construction- in the South West of Scotland.

We anticipate the construction phase will last approximately 12-18 months.

Now that we have submitted a planning application, Breckland Council is running a formal consultation on the proposals. You can view and comment on all the application documents here using the application reference.

If you have any questions about the plans, we would be happy to help please get in touch.

The preservation of biodiversity and wildlife on site is a top priority for Statkraft, which is why we are committing to provide ecological enhancements for Necton Greener Grid Park. 
 
Our plans include an area of woodland, scrub and species-rich hedgerow at the south and east of our proposed development. This will help screen our Greener Grid Park and contribute to the biodiversity benefits delivered from the project. We have also proposed a 0.9ha area, approximately 700m south-east of our site, for the sole purpose of habitat creation. 

Overall, we expect that the project will deliver more than a 10% increase in biodiversity net gain (13.11% increase in habitat units and 86.45% increase in hedgerow units).  

Biodiversity net gain is a measurement which measures how the development will benefit local habitats and wildlife. 

The planning application is accompanied by a drainage impact assessment including the provision of sustainable drainage measures. This includes an "attenuation basin" located in the north-east corner of the site which safely stores excess rain and storm water.

Once the facility has been constructed, there will be minimal vehicle trips to the site during the operation of the development as the site will be operated remotely. There will be occasional visits for maintenance and inspection of the facility, so there will not be a noticeable impact on traffic flows in the area.

The planning application includes detailed assessments of construction traffic and access routes, and measures will be taken to minimise the impacts on local residents. This will include careful scheduling of deliveries which might include scheduling abnormal load vehicles arriving at night, HGV delivery timings and any restrictions being agreed with the council and the selection of the most suitable construction access routes.

Details of construction access will be secured in an enforceable Construction Traffic Management Plan that will accompany any planning consent.

Safety is our priority, which is why all of our sites are fitted with controls which monitor the site 24/7 and can remotely shut down the system. There will be stringent emergency measures in place, which are outlined in the emergency plan produced before construction starts. In addition, we will have Senior Authorised Persons (SAP) with sufficient competence who will be responsible for the site.

This project, if constructed, will help the UK to secure its energy supply and move towards its zero carbon emissions targets by increasing the stability of the electricity grid and reducing reliance of fossil fuels. It will also bring a reduction in energy prices and spend by National Grid on constraints.

If consented the Necton Greener Grid Park will provide a Community Benefit Fund of £20,000 per annum from the start of construction for the life of the project. Our Community Benefit Fund is the first of its kind for grid services projects.

Our community benefit funds are dedicated to projects that help accelerate the transition to a low carbon society. Find out more our Community Benefit Funds.

The Community Benefit Fund of £20,000 per year would run for as long as the Greener Grid Park was in operation. These are usually administered by an independent third party and would cover an area of benefit agreed with local people.

Yes. We have a local suppliers page where you can register your interest. Please complete that if you are a local business and interested in the project, or would like to recommend one.  

We will work with groups such as the Norfolk Chambers of Commerce to maximise opportunities for local suppliers.