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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.
About the project
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 barns, warehouse 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 Swansea North as an area which requires more grid stabilisation, due to the amount of renewable energy being generated across the UK.
At Swansea North, the close proximity to the new NGESO substation avoids lengthy transmission cables, and ensures an efficient connection to the grid whilst minimising disturbance and cost.
Construction began in August 2024 and is expected to last around 18 months. During this time there will be opportunities for local businesses to get involved.
A range of suppliers and services are needed to build a project. We are interested in hearing from companies that usually supply construction sites, as well as off-site services such as lodging, restaurants, catering and car hire.
Visit our local suppliers page to find out more.
We will ensure the visual impacts from the site are mitigated as much as possible with new screening and building colours that do not disrupt the local landscape.
A Greener Grid Park is usually comprised of few buildings next to an existing electricity substation. If you were passing it, and you didn’t know, you’d probably think it was a barn, a storage unit, or a shipping container.
Yes. Our first Greener Grid Park is operating in Keith, Moray. We are also nearing completion of a second Greener Grid Park in Liverpool. The technology used in these projects are synchronous compensators. We have also won contracts from National Grid Electricity Systems Operator for two grid forming battery projects at Coylton and Neilston in the South West of Scotland.
We also have similar projects in Ireland.
During construction, we will work to keep noise levels from the site to a minimum. We will follow all conditions imposed on construction activities by the Council including noise levels and working hours.
We are committed to minimising disruption to the local communities during construction and, once operational, the development will not exceed noise limits set by the council to ensure respect for any homes and businesses in the area.
The building colour has been selected for its ability to blend in with the existing substation with a moss green look.
We anticipate the construction phase will last approximately 12 - 18 months.
We would love to keep you informed. You can register on this website to ensure you are kept up to date, or use the contact us form to let us know your postal address.
Environmental considerations
This project will help the UK move towards its zero carbon emissions targets by increasing the stability of the electricity grid that will support a reduction in energy prices and spend by National Grid on constraints.
The planning application was accompanied by a drainage impact assessment which sets out how we will ensure that there are no negative flooding impacts.
Safety and traffic
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 unmanned. There will be occasional visits for maintenance and inspection of the facility, so there will not be noticeable impact on traffic flows in the area.
Our new construction access route will utilise existing farm access and mostly avoids residential areas. This will minimise the impacts on local residents along with methods such as carefully scheduling deliveries as set out in our Construction Traffic Management Plan.
The site will be fenced off using high security-fencing.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 constant illumination to prevent light pollution. Once operational, the site is expected to be attended by a service technician only for essential maintenance.
Emergencies
Safety is our first priority, which is why all of our sites are fitted with controls that 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. We will also engage a local security company to respond to security alarms within a set time frame.
Statkraft will implement procedures and plans for emergency situations and will run regular emergency preparedness exercises in order to ensure that all personnel in the organisation, including third parties, are aware of how to act and react if any unplanned situations should occur. Agreements will be made, and cooperation established with local emergency services for training and exercises in order to secure own personnel, third parties, environment and properties.
Fire safety measures were detailed within the planning statement and fire safety strategy report with the input from all suppliers and the Statkaft operations team.
Some examples of measures we will take include:
1. To separate transformers from adjacent structures and from each other.
2. Resistance barriers (fire wall), spatial separation, and provided with an enclosure.
3. Spatial separation between the transformer and the synchronous compensator building or the facing elevation wall of the building.
4. Automatic fire, gas and smoke detection (beam based) within the buildings.
5. Automatic fire suppression (e.g. water and/or gas-based sprinklers) within the buildings.
6. Use of fire-resistant non-combustible materials/enclosures around the components.
7. 24/7 remote control of the temperature of the components.
Benefits
This project will help the UK move towards its zero carbon emissions targets by increasing the stability of the electricity grid with Synchronous Compensator technology. It will also bring a reduction in energy prices and spend by National Grid on constraints.
Swansea Greener Grid Park will benefit from a Community Benefit Fund of £20,000 per annum from the start of construction for the life of the project. Our community benefit is the first of its kind for grid projects.
The community benefit fund of £20,000 per year would run for as long as the Greener Grid Park was in operation. This fund will be administered by an independent third party, and would cover an area of benefit agreed with local people.
Yes. We have a local suppliers registration link on the website so 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 Chamber of Commerce to maximise opportunities for local suppliers.