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About the developer
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 more than 550 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.
Yes. We currently have two operational Greener Grid Parks in Keith, Moray and Lister Drive, Liverpool and three undergoing construction in the United Kingdom. Our Neilston Greener Grid Park (containing BESS) near Glasgow is due to become operational in Spring 2025.
Outside of the UK, we operate similar projects in Ireland, the Netherlands, and Germany.
About the project
Our electricity network needs increased grid stability, and this project will help to deliver that. This project will provide battery storage services as an extension to the already consented Swansea Greener Grid Park, which is currently under construction. Batteries capture and store energy for future use. They increase the amount of renewable energy consumers can use by storing excess energy and releasing it when demand is high.
We are currently constructing a Greener Grid Park east of the Swansea North substation.
The project under construction consists of large electrical machines with flywheels (called synchronous compensators) which can replace the function of the spinning turbines of a traditional power station without emitting any carbon dioxide.
The new proposals would use a different technology, Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), which also work to provide grid stability. Batteries capture and store energy for future use. They increase the amount of renewable energy consumers can use by storing and releasing it when demand is high.
If the project is consented, we anticipate construction could start in early 2026.
Construction is expected to last around 18 months. Should consent be granted, we expect the Swansea Greener Grid Park extension to be operational by summer 2027.
We have designed a site layout that effectively screens the development within the existing landscape as part of our pre-application design phase. If consented, the design will include using colours that are designed to blend in to the landscape, and new planting to screen the development.
As part of our planning application, we will produce indicative drawings of the development – these will be available to view in the Project Documents section of the website.
We are in the process of designing the project and are keen to hear local residents’ comments and questions before the proposals are finalised. Please get in touch.
Once a planning application has been submitted you can provide feedback directly to Swansea Council’s Planning Department. We will keep this website updated with news on when that has taken place.
We would love to keep you informed. You can get in touch and register to ensure you are kept up to date, or use the contact us form to let us know your postal address.
Environmental considerations
Our proposal will support energy security in Wales by helping to achieve a renewables-ready network. This will help the UK move towards its net zero carbon emissions targets by increasing the stability of the national grid.
The proposal has a strong alignment with national and local sustainable energy policy objectives. Planning policy is clear that the planning system should support the transition to a low carbon future including supporting renewable and low carbon energy and associated infrastructure.
The proposal will also deliver landscaping and a biodiversity net gain.
The site is within Flood Zone 1, the lowest risk flood zone. The planning application will be accompanied by a drainage impact assessment which sets out what sustainable drainage features may be included to ensure that there will be no negative flooding impacts.
Safety and traffic
Once operational, minimal vehicle trips to the site will be needed because the site will be operated remotely. There will be occasional, scheduled visits for maintenance and inspection of the facility.
We will take care to combine the visit to encompass the existing Greener Grid Park and its extension. This means the extension should not noticeably increase the number of trips to site.
Our construction access route would use the same access as the consented Greener Grid Park site, which mostly avoids residential areas. This will minimise the impacts on local residents.
We will also carefully schedule deliveries as set out in our Construction Traffic Management Plan that will be submitted with our planning application.
Yes. The site will be fenced off using high-security fencing to ensure safety to the public.
No, the lights will be installed with motion sensors and will not be in operation at all times. Once operational, the site is expected to be attended by a service technician only for essential maintenance.
Emergencies
There will not be staff employed full time on site during operation, however, safety is our first 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 will be outlined in the emergency plan, produced before construction starts. In addition, we will have Senior Authorised Persons - professional who safety in high voltage (HV) areas - on call. This team will have all the skills and qualifications to deal with emergencies on site, should they arise.
We will also engage a local security company to respond to security alarms within a set time frame.
We are consulting with the fire and rescue service as part of the planning process to ensure they are involved in the site plans. Statkraft has procedures in place for emergency situations.
We make sure that everyone in the organisation and our subcontractors know how to act if any unplanned situations should occur. This includes holding regular emergency preparedness exercises.
We are committed to developing our emergency response procedure together with the local emergency services and will work with the fire and rescue service.
A detailed design risk assessment will be detailed within the planning statement and fire safety strategy report.
Some examples of measures we would take include:
- • To ensure transformers are spaced at safe distances from adjacent structures, and from each other.
- Inclusion of resistance barriers (fire wall), and separation between units
- Automatic fire, gas and smoke detection within the buildings.
- Automatic fire suppression through water and/or gas-based sprinklers within the buildings.
- Use of fire-resistant, non-combustible materials around the components.
- 24/7 remote control of the temperature of the components.
- Regular maintenance and testing of BESS.
Benefits
Yes. We will be providing a further community benefit fund of £20,000 a year, which is in addition to the £20,000 per annum fund already committed to for the in under-construction Greener Grid Park.
Yes. We have a local suppliers registration on the website, so please complete the form if you are a local business and interested in the project, or would like to recommend one.