Conrad Energy brings the benefits of the energy transition to the North West

Conrad Energy are celebrating the full energisation of our 25MW 50MWh battery energy storage site (BESS) in Bispham, Blackpool.

Following energisation in late January, the site has been through hot commissioning and is now ready to play its part in keeping the lights on in Blackpool. The site can store, and release, enough energy to keep around 10,000 homes energised for 4 hours.

Each site reaching this point is the culmination of months of preparation work, in partnership with communities, landlords and local authorities. This site also represents a team effort between Conrad Energy, Green Frog Connect, General Electric’s (GE) battery division and Electricity North West. This is the first of seven Conrad Energy battery sites under construction in conjunction with GE.

Steven Hardman, Conrad Energy’s Chief Executive Officer said “Long term partnerships are a cornerstone of Conrad Energy’s vision of a world powered by a sustainable net zero energy system. This project has strengthened our relationships with key partners who are aligned with our net zero mission and allowed us to build relationships with new local partners in Blackpool.”

Blackpool is also the first battery site Conrad Energy have taken from start to finish with our in-house construction team. Battery storage is a vital ingredient for the stabilisation of the grid, in line with the transition to renewable and low carbon energy. The development of the technology is enabling it to fulfil its crucial role in maximising the usefulness of renewable energy, by flattening out some of the curves in supply created by weather fluctuations.

This fully operational site will now be handed over to our Operations and Maintenance teams to ensure it remains at optimal performance, with the power it stores being traded on the wholesale markets or offered to the system operator to provide frequency response by our in-house optimisation team.

Steve Moody, Conrad Energy’s Trading Director, elaborated, “Conrad Energy’s proprietary optimisation platform iON is used for our own and other owners’ sites to ensure the best returns for all energy assets under our management. This is the first of seven battery energy storage sites, which further increase our impact on both the trading and frequency response markets. By making sure renewable energy is generated and utilised as efficiently and as profitable as possible, we’re harnessing the power of our dynamic asset optimisation to drive net zero.”

Conrad Energy offer route to market Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) that reap the full benefits of our iON platform and dedicated in-house trading team. To find out more, or if you’d like to know about hosting a site, please get in touch.

Photo L-R shows Paul English, Head of Global Sales, Solare and Storage at GE Renewable Energy with Steven Hardman, Conrad Energy’s CEO, at yesterday’s ceremony at the Blackpool battery energy storage site.