Image: Gore Street Energy Storage Fund
A battery storage site in Northern Ireland developed by Low Carbon and Gore Street Energy Storage Fund has been energised.
The lithium-ion project, located at Drumkee, County Tyrone, is being lauded as the country’s largest energy storage project and is to serve the Single Electricity Market. It was completed on time, the two companies said, despite the closure of the site for several weeks during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as social distancing measures being needed when the site reopened.
A second 50MW project – Mullavilly – is expected to be energised in December, with both projects to be commissioned and operational in Q1 2021.
NEC Energy Solutions was awarded EPC and long-term O&M contracts for the two projects in January 2020. Whilst NEC Energy Solutions has since announced its closure, it is continuing to deliver on its obligations to existing projects.
As part of the Irish portfolio, Low Carbon and Gore Street are also developing two 30MW projects in the Republic of Ireland, both of which have secured 6-year contracts in Ireland’s DS3 flexibility market. Gore Street acquired a controlling interest in the portfolio in 2019, with the two companies to jointly own and operate the assets.
Earlier this month, Gore Street announced it had signed an EPC and O&M contract with Fluence for one of the 30MW projects - Porterstown - and had also applied to triple its capacity in the Republic of Ireland, up to a total of 180MW.
Alex O'Cinneide, CEO of Gore Street Capital, said Drumkee and Mullavilly may also "benefit from attractive DS3 contracts and should therefore yield an attractive return".
The two companies also praised the project's contribution to the local job market, with local tradespeople and contractors hired where possible. Other companies involved in the project include SMA, G2 Energy, SONI and Northern Ireland Electricity Networks.