Ørsted just bought a 300 MW Tesla battery energy storage system for the UK’s Hornsea 3 Offshore Wind Farm.
The Tesla Megapack battery storage system will be installed on the site of Ørsted’s onshore converter station for Hornsea 3, in Swardeston, near Norwich, in East Anglia.
The storage system has a capacity of 600 MWh, equivalent to the daily energy use of 80,000 UK homes. When electricity generation exceeds demand, the battery will store the excess, which will be discharged later to help balance the grid.
This will reduce price volatility for consumers by making more power available, including during peak periods when energy tends to be more expensive. It will help smooth out the variations between supply and demand in UK energy systems.
Mike Snyder, senior director of Megapack at Tesla, said:
Tesla is excited to be part of this industry-leading project with an exceptional partner. This project demonstrates the value and flexibility of Tesla’s best-in-class power electronics, providing enhanced grid stability and enabling more renewables on the grid.
When complete, the Tesla battery energy storage system will be one of the largest in Europe. It’s expected to be operational by the end of 2026.
The 2.9 GW Hornsea 3 offshore wind farm, which will have the capacity to power more than 3.3 million UK homes, will be 160 km (99 miles) off the Yorkshire coast and is expected to be completed at the end of 2027.
It will be Ørsted’s third gigawatt-scale project in the UK’s Hornsea zone, following 1.2 GW Hornsea 1 and 1.3 GW Hornsea 2 (pictured above); both are already online.
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