Field acquires 800 MWh BESS project from Clearstone Energy

In the UK, a major BESS project has changed hands following a deal between London-headquartered Clearstone Energy and Field, an energy storage specialist with ambitions to conquer the renewables market.

Field bought the Hartmoor project, located in Hartlepool in the northeast of the UK, for an undisclosed amount. The battery can store up to 800 MWh of electricity, which is enough to power 500,000 homes for four hours when fully charged.  

The Hartmoor battery is the latest addition to Field’s 11 GW portfolio of battery storage projects under development and construction across Europe. The company has three operational battery storage projects at Oldham (20 MW / 20 MWh), Gerrards Cross (20 MW / 20 MWh) and Newport (20 MW / 40 MWh) in the UK, with seven more projects in construction or pre-construction stages totaling 450 MW / 1 GWh.

Amit Gudka, CEO of Field, said transmission-connected battery storage projects like Hartmoor can provide reliable, renewable power at a lower cost to bill payers than any other technology.

“Significantly increasing renewable energy capacity is an important part of delivering the energy transition but cannot be done in a low cost and stable way unless energy storage capacity grows with it,” Gudka added.

Renewable electricity generation is set to increase substantially in the Hartlepool area by 2030, with 3.6 GW of offshore wind from the Dogger Bank project connecting to the grid between 2025 and 2028.

The Hartmoor battery will help deploy this energy more evenly and with less chance of curtailment.

Gudka also said battery storage services would play a key role in helping the UK reach its 2030 clean power targets. He called on the government, electricity regulator and the UK’s National Energy System Operator to “continue working together to accelerate the deployment and enable greater use of battery storage, in order to achieve a net zero energy system.”

Clearstone Energy founder, Ben Pratt, echoed Gudka’s calls for increased battery storage capacity across the UK. He praised Field’s “compelling vision for the future of the UK energy system”, adding “We’re delighted that they will take the project through construction and into operations.”

Clearstone specializes in BESS and solar PV deployment. It plans to funnel the funds from the sale of the Hartmoor project back into its 2.2 GW portfolio of eight large scale battery storage projects in the UK. The first project in the pipeline, a 400 MW / 800 MWh facility in Devon, obtained planning permission in April 2024.