Planning permission has been granted by Blaby District Council to UK renewable energy developer, Exagen, for a 500MW/1GWh battery on land to the northeast of Earl Shilton, Leicestershire.
The £270 million Normanton Energy will be directly connected to the National Grid at a new substation.
The approved plans will see 45% of the 19 acres of land used to improve biodiversity. Normanton Millennium Wood will be extended and there will be new wildflower meadows and land for beekeeping, along with new hedgerows and perimeter tree planting.
Exagen will take ownership of the land, so will have a long-term vested interest in the local community and stewardship of the site. It will establish a dedicated community fund to spend on improvements in the local area. The start of construction will see £250,000 made available for local projects and groups and, once operational, £50,000 will be added each year of the project’s operational life of up to 40 years – amounting to c.£4million.