Invinity Wins 20.7MWh Vanadium Flow Battery Order in England

Invinity Energy Systems announced that it has obtained approval from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) to deploy the UK's largest vanadium flow battery (VFB) system to date in southeast England, with a total energy storage capacity of 20.7MWh. This project is not only Invinity's largest single project worldwide, but also the UK's first long-term energy storage project deployed in conjunction with on-site renewable energy generation facilities.

The energy storage system will consist of VS3 vanadium flow batteries produced by Invinity at its Motherwell plant in Scotland. Construction is expected to begin in the second half of 2025 and be put into operation in 2026. The project is partly funded by the UK government's "Long Duration Energy Storage (LODES)" competition. The total cost is expected to be around £20 million, of which £7-10 million will be provided by DESNZ, and the rest will come from Invinity's previously completed £57.4 million financing.

As the wholly owned owner of the project, Invinity will have full control over the battery's operational and trading data to optimize the performance of the energy storage system while generating long-term grid balancing and energy trading revenue. The project land has been leased for 25 years through a dedicated special purpose vehicle (SPV), with an option to extend for 15 years. The site was originally planned for solar and battery energy storage systems, and currently has a 5.5MW grid access permit, but the original plan needs to be adjusted to make it clear that vanadium flow batteries are used instead of lithium-ion batteries. Currently, the modification application has been submitted and supported by DESNZ, and is expected to be approved smoothly.

Vanadium flow batteries have important advantages in the field of long-term energy storage due to their high safety, non-flammability and long cycle life. The implementation of this project will not only promote the development of the UK energy storage industry, but also provide a demonstration for Invinity's potential customers, further enhancing the company's competitiveness in the global energy storage market.