Partnership announced

With agreements being currently put in place for the first project at Dorking, the partnership consists of a total of 22MW and are expected to go live between the summer of 2018 and early 2019. 

GBSL was formed by Andrew Blumfield and James McKellar to realise the potential of battery energy storage in the UK. The partnership announcement follows the UK government putting battery storage at the centre of a distributed electricity system vision.

The UK government announced a £246 million funding package for battery research and development alongside a plan to increase smart energy technology penetration in businesses and homes.

The partnership will see Siemens and GBSL working together to offer grid scale storage coupled with a new ‘energy storage as a service’ offering. The two companies expect this service offering to save industrial high energy users tens of thousands of pounds per year on the cost of electricity. This would be achieved whilst simultaneously helping to improve power quality and reduce production losses as a result of service interruptions. The solution is designed to help industrial businesses gain the benefits of on-site electricity storage without capital investment. 

GBSL will use Siemens SieStorage Lithium-ion battery energy storage solutions, and the projects will be financed by Siemens Financial Services in the UK. The partnership is designed to maximise the benefits from battery storage and to introduce new storage technology as it emerges. 

Chris Beadsworth, director at Siemens Energy Management Division, said: “GBSL is expert at delivering complex energy projects and we look forward to further strengthening our partnership. The combination of Siemens’ innovative technologies together with GBSL’s vision will provide a compelling case to companies seeking guaranteed energy storage capability - with no capital cost.”

Andrew Blumfield from GBSL commented: “We are delighted to have reached this agreement with Siemens which builds on a track record of a successful commercial partnership. The four new battery energy storage projects will support National Grid and ensure energy storage projects can continue to provide cost effective solutions to modern challenges.”