Plans for battery energy storage park criticised

Campaigners have criticised plans for a 58-acre battery energy storage park on green belt land in North Yorkshire.

Green energy company NatPower has unveiled the plans for a site near Thirsk, which also include creating a nature reserve on the remaining two thirds of the 173-acre site.

The company said the plant, which would be one of the largest of its kind in the UK, could power up to 3.9 million homes for up to four hours at a time.

However, Thirsk Against Battery Storage (TABS) said it had concerns about the suitability of the proposed location and called for the facility to be built on brownfield land.

Known as a gigapark, the facility would store energy from renewables, like solar and wind, and then release it when the power is needed most.

A marketing video released as part of the plans shows an outdoor education centre, a picnic area and fountains on the site.

South Kilvington resident Philip Martin, one of the founders of TABS, said the proposals represented the "Disneyfication of the countryside".

"You don't need to wait for NatPower to cover 58 acres in concrete and industry and then come and enjoy it. They are taking a lot away and giving a little back."

NatPower's global marketing director Nnenna Hemeson said the company analysed 31 million areas of land in the UK when looking for sites to house a battery energy storage park.

She said the land in Thirsk was chosen in part because the soil there was not the "best and most versatile" for farming.

Brownfield and industrial land was prioritised, she added, but a more suitable location could not be found.

Creating a nature reserve on the site would also lead to a 100% biodiversity gain, Ms Hemeson said.

"What this means is we are going to leave the land better than where we found it."

She said construction was expected to start in "late 2026", if planning permission was granted.

Ms Hemeson estimated the site would take two years to build.

Gareth Dadd, who represents Thirsk on North Yorkshire Council, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “If it comes to fruition in the hinterland of rural North Yorkshire I will take a lot of convincing that the candy is worth the gain."

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