Our story
StorTera was one of two teams chosen to demonstrate their net zero solution for Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council, after four teams completed Phase 1 feasibility studies. The aim was to develop an innovative net-zero energy solution for the commercial and industrial sector, funded by the Welsh Government via the Whole System Business Research & Innovation for Decarbonisation Challenge (WBRID).
StorTera's approach to the challenge was to install a pilot demonstration network at one business park, comprising of large-scale energy storage, solar PV generation and a selection of flexible loads such as heat pumps, electric heating and EV chargers. The solution utilised StorTera's innovative artificial intelligence control platform to combine and optimise the technologies so the project objectives could be met without adding strain on the electricity network or additional cost to the end users.
An 'energy storage as a service' model for a 250kW/500kWh lithium ferrous phosphate battery system was developed to demonstrate that large-scale energy storage can be implemented without the significant upfront capital investment while still providing financial benefits to the service user.
The overall aim of the pilot installation project was to demonstrate that the combination of an integrated hardware and software solution, along with a profitable business model, can provide benefits to all stakeholders and could be replicated at any other business park.
StorTera also worked with Perth and Kinross Council in Scotland, demonstrating a novel smart energy network with their project partner EDF. In this project, StorTera built the next generation of their single liquid flow battery, a very promising low-cost technology with high energy density and long lifetime. Project partner EDF modelled and demonstrated peer-to-peer energy trading between two sites, a waste depot and a school.
Our advice
We would advise others trying to do similar projects to engage with stakeholders as early as possible, in particular with the local grid operator as this can often cause delays in deployment.
We would also advise having a strong supply chain with multiple suppliers in order to mitigate against risks of late delivery or potential supply issues.
Our Changeprint
Our Changeprint can be measured by the technical, financial and environmental impacts. Technical - kWh of solar generation; kWh of heat generation that is off setting gas consumption; kWh of battery energy stored. Financial - large scale energy storage without big upfront capital investment. Environmental - tonnes of CO2 savings.
