A £25m ‘green power grid’ that will accelerate renewable energy use on the national electricity network is switched on in Liverpool. Tony McDonough reports
Renewable power generator Statkraft has switched on its £25m ‘green power grid’ in Liverpool.
Its Greener Grid Park, located in Lister Drive in Tuebrook, will enable more electricity from renewable sources, such as wind or solar, to be used on the UK electricity network.
A Norwegian renewables specialist, Statkraft saw construction of the facility begin in 2021. Long-term maintenance services provided by ABB, whose UK team is based in Warrington.
ABB has also been responsible for the delivery and installation of the Greener Grid Park’s specialised equipment comprising ‘synchronous compensators’ and ‘flywheels’.
Traditionally, coal or gas-powered turbines are called upon to provide stability to the electricity system.
Statkraft’s Greener Grid Parks replace these providers, by delivering fault current and inertia to the system, maintaining system strength and stability in the electricity system, without producing carbon emissions.
Greener Grid Parks help deliver long-term stability to the power network, enabling more renewable energy such as wind and solar generation to be utilised on the grid.
This helps National Grid ESO, the operator of Britain’s electricity network, achieve its ambitions of operating the electricity system without fossil fuels by 2025.
The Liverpool switch-on comes almost a year after Statkraft started operating its Greener Grid Park in Keith, Moray. It is part of National Grid ESO’s Stability Pathfinder Phase 1 scheme. The inertia provided is the equivalent of five coal-fired power stations.
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Statkraft has secured contracts with National Grid ESO for two further Greener Grid Parks in Scotland, and three Greener Grid Parks in England and Wales.
Kevin O’Donovan, Statkraft’s UK managing director, said: “Our Greener Grid Parks are a vital part of the energy transition, so it’s an important milestone that Lister Drive is now operational.
“If we don’t need to burn coal and run fossil fuel power stations, just to provide stability to the grid, it means fewer harmful emissions are being released into the air, and consumers are saving money, because renewable energy is cheaper.
“That’s why Greener Grid Parks are critical to ensure our electricity infrastructure is fit for the challenges of the future.
“The challenge we face is not just that more renewables are needed, but that the infrastructure is in place to support them.”