Manchester to become home of ‘world’s largest liquid air battery’

The project in Trafford is expected to help the country make the most of its solar and wind energy resources

A new electricity storage facility, which claims to become the ‘world’s largest liquid air battery’, has been backed by £10 million of government investment.

The ‘first commercial liquid air battery facility in the world’ will land in Trafford, Manchester, and is expected to power as many as 200,000 homes for five hours every day. Highview Power is one of the companies involved and ELN visited their test site back in 2012 to see how the technology worked.

 

The 50MW/250 MWh cryogenic energy storage system will work by using electricity to cool and compress air, turning it into liquid and storing it in containers.

It then will feed the liquid through a turbine, turning it back into electricity and pumping it back into the grid when it is needed.

Energy and Clean Growth Minister Kwasi Kwarteng said: “Projects like these will help us realise the full value of our world-class renewables, ensuring homes and businesses can still be powered by green energy, even when the sun is not shining and the wind not blowing.”

Javier Cavada, Highview Power CEO, said, “This new cryogenic energy storage plant will deliver much needed long-duration energy storage and provide valuable services to the National Grid. We are delighted to have been chosen to assist the UK in achieving its goal of a 100% clean, carbon-free energy future.”

The project is said to help the country meet its electricity needs from the grid and reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

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