Construction begins on TagEnergy 50MW Chapel Farm battery storage facility following funding
Global clean energy enterprise Tag Energy has continued its UK market growth with construction commencing on a 49.5MW/99MWh standalone energy storage system near Luton, England, following funding from Santander UK.
The £30m Chapel Farm development is a joint venture with Yorkshire-headquartered Harmony Energy, following TagEnergy’s acquisition of a 60% stake in the project in November 2021. Santander UK is supporting the green energy initiative with £12.5m funding.
Chapel Farm will use a system of Tesla Megapack lithium-ion batteries, together with Tesla’s Autobidder AI software for real-time trading and control. It is expected to be operational in Q1 2023, with leading independent renewable energy company RES as asset manager.
Franck Woitiez, chief executive officer, TagEnergy said commencement of construction of TagEnergy’s second battery energy storage facility in the UK reinforced its commitment to supporting the shift to a clean energy future.
“This is an important milestone in TagEnergy’s growth in the UK as we leverage our strong storage expertise to support the UK grid through connecting more sustainable, competitive and clean power. We are excited to enter this next phase in the project in partnership with Harmony Energy and with the support of Santander as we grow our UK footprint to accelerate the energy transition,” Mr Woitiez said.
Mark Cumbo, director, Specialised and Project Finance at Santander UK said: “Santander UK is delighted to support TagEnergy and Harmony Energy with funding for this project, which marks an important contribution to the UK’s ability to produce a reliable flow of electricity from renewable sources.
“It follows the funding we provided TagEnergy last year to enter the UK market with Hawkers Hill Energy Park. Santander UK strongly supports clients such as TagEnergy that are bringing positive environmental change to the UK’s energy sector,” Mr Cumbo said.
Peter Kavanagh, CEO, Harmony Energy said: “We are delighted to be progressing this site with TagEnergy. Securing debt funding from Santander UK demonstrates a growing appetite from institutions to support battery developments and we look forward to working with them.”
Chapel Farm is the second TagEnergy investment in battery storage facilities in the UK to reach financial close following its entry into the UK market in 2021. Construction of its first project, Hawkers Hill Energy Park in Dorset, began in September 2021.
Chapel Farm and Hawkers Hill, together with previously announced projects Roaring Hill in Fife, Scotland, a second joint venture with Harmony Energy, Jamesfield Farm near Abernethy, Scotland, and Lakeside in North Yorkshire take TagEnergy’s secured portfolio in the UK to date to 270MW/540MWh.
