Varco Energy

We are pleased to announce the full commercial operations of our 57MW/138MWh Native River Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) near Liverpool! Strategically located in the 'Mersey Ring' section of the UK Grid, Native River provides essential grid-balancing services, supporting NESO in ensuring a stable and reliable electricity supply. This cutting-edge facility leverages lithium-ion battery technology to deliver up to 57MW/138MWh of power, smoothing out fluctuations caused by intermittent renewables. This milestone marks a significant step in Varco's mission to drive the energy transition to a net-zero future. Over the next eighteen months, we aim to energise 250MW of assets in the UK, with a further 275MW in our pipeline. At Varco Energy, we are committed to investing in technology that enhances grid resilience and creates long-term value for consumers across the UK. Together, we are driving the energy transition and supporting a more sustainable future. 🌱💡 #VarcoEnergy #NativeRiver #BatteryStorage #RenewableEnergy #Sustainability #EnergyTransition #NetZero

One for you Roger Hollies i suspect to show what the BESS response was. The big issue we would highlight is the clear growing number of these trip events (more interconnectors of a more unstable nature?), and how close these frequency drops are getting to the minimum operating levels of 49.5Hz, blasting through the operational minimum target of 49.8Hz. Far be it for us to tell National Grid ESO how to manage risk, but it feels like the increased number of times this is happening is making the likelihood of a major event worryingly likely. Surely a 49.6Hz event should be a 3SD+ event happening at most once a year or so? Allowing the system to get to this level multiple times a year is asking for a black swan event to happen when a 'double trip' kicks in. As BESS operators we would say this, but given how low cost it is to procure fast frequency response services, surely NESO should double procurement immediately and ensure trips can't push the system to such a low frequency levels.

Varco are excited to announce that we are working with Arenko to deploy their Nimbus Performance asset management software across our 400MWh battery portfolio. This partnership will enable us to optimize the performance of 160MW of battery storage across three sites, which include some of the UK’s largest and longest duration battery assets. Varco's first project went live in August, with two more to follow soon. Working with Arenko to manage these digital assets is another step towards our shared goal of building a sustainable, zero-carbon grid ⚡

Great to share we are working with Ethical Power on our Sambar Power BESS project in Cornwall. Ethical Power will provide Balance of Plant works for the 47.5MW project.

Varco are pleased to announce our collaboration with GE Vernova on the development of our 47.5MW (2 hour duration) Sambar Power battery storage project in Cornwall. At Varco, we are dedicated to investing in assets that accelerate renewable integration, sustain a resilient grid and drive consumer value in the UK. This initiative is particularly timely for the UK, as it supports the new government's push towards #netzero while injecting much needed investment into a crucial sector for managing renewable energy supply and demand.