18.06.20
£10m green technology project set for Greater Manchester
The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy has announced today (June 18) that Greater Manchester will be home to the world’s first commercial liquid air battery project.
The facility has been planned for Trafford, Greater Manchester and will harness the UK’s solar and wind energy to put the city ‘at the forefront of the latest green technology’.
Supported by a £10m Government investment, the project is set to create more than 200 jobs for the region and accelerate the UK’s position as green energy leaders.
The CryoBattery enables the storing of excess energy at a far greater rate than what is on offer with existing batteries and for a longer period of time.
Energy and Clean Growth Minister Kwasi Kwarteng said:
“This revolutionary new Cryobattery facility will form a key part of our push towards net zero, bringing greater flexibility to Britain’s electricity grid and creating green collar jobs in Greater Manchester.
“Projects like these will help us realise the full value of our world-class renewables, ensuring homes and businesses can still be powered by green energy, even when the sun is not shining and the wind not blowing.”
Industrial sized containers will be used to store liquid made through cooling and compressing air, before the liquid is fed through a turbine and turned back into electricity and redistributed into the grid as needed.
The UK is home to the world’s largest offshore wind farm, with a third of electricity needed to power the country now coming from renewable sources. However, the unpredictable nature of wind and solar power means energy is produced when it is not needed by the grid.
Once fully operational, the technology could power as many as 200,000 homes for five hours a day, helping the UK to reach its target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
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