Island Green Power is preparing an application for planning permission for a site on land near Exeter Electricity Substation, for a battery energy storage system (BESS) of up to 125 MW. The project is called Broadclyst Energy Storage. The Proposed Development would have an operational lifespan of approximately 40 years, following which the site would be restored back to its former state.

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The overall site area is approximately 12 hectares, however, the developable area will cover less than 2 hectares of this. This is to allow for flexibility in final design, which is influenced by ongoing assessment work, feedback from consultation and establishment of landscape mitigation and biodiversity enhancement.

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The Proposed Development will comprise:

+ battery storage units;

+ an electrical substation and associated infrastructure;

+ fire suppression systems and water storage tanks;

+ site access and internal access tracks;

+ fencing and CCTV;

+ landscaping and biodiversity mitigation and enhancement;

+ an underground cable connection to the National Grid Exeter substation; and

+ a temporary construction compound.

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The Proposed Development would provide further stability to the grid through the storage of electricity and the appropriate coordination and release of stored electricity when demand is high or it is otherwise required. This service is an important component of balancing the supply and demand on the infrastructure that serves homes and businesses and is vital to a sustainable and viable network across the whole country.

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The Proposed Development would reduce fluctuations, improve stability and reduce the risk of power failures. This is essential to enable the transition to low carbon energy. As such, with the existing constraints of grid capacity in the UK, BESS and other energy storage technologies are required to support the Country’s transition to a Net Zero economy by 2050 and a Net Zero electricity grid by 2030.

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We plan to submit a full planning application under the provisions of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended) to East Devon District Council in the coming months. As we develop our proposal, we are keen to gather feedback from local residents.

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Visual appearance

The Proposed Development will be designed to blend into the landscape, using existing natural screening and additional planting where necessary. The site benefits from existing hedgerows and trees around its edges and it is also well separated from any national or local landscape designations.

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Visual impact will be minimised through careful siting and design of infrastructure. The substation and BESS units will be enclosed by secure fencing and screened with new landscaping to ensure minimal disruption to the surrounding properties. The site also benefits from the surrounding sloping ground, which will provide greater natural screening, and sits in an area already home to other adjacent energy developments.

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The site is well separated from the nearest settlements, with the village of Broadclyst located over 1.4 km away to the west and the village of Cranbrook located 1.5 km to the south.

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A public footpath runs north to south along the eastern-most boundary of the site. The visual impact on this footpath will be considered and carefully managed through the design process.

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Environment

The project will not result in significant environmental impacts and there are no statutory landscape, heritage, or ecological designations within or adjacent to the site. The site is also not located within an area at risk of flooding.

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There are three records of non-designated heritage assets within or adjoining the site. A heritage assessment will be undertaken to consider the impact of the Proposed Development on the significance and setting of these and suggest any appropriate mitigation measures.

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Ecological surveys are underway to inform the final design. The site comprises fields managed in arable rotation, which offer little ecological value. Wintering bird surveys have already been undertaken and found species abundance and diversity to be low. Nevertheless, significant landscape and biodiversity enhancements will form part of the final design and a biodiversity net gain of at least 20% will be achieved.

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An Agricultural Land Classification assessment has been undertaken, which confirmed that approximately 70% of the site is Subgrade 3b (Moderate quality) land or lower. This is therefore not considered to be ‘best or most versatile’ agricultural land. Given the developable area only comprises approximately 20% of the site, suitable design and siting of infrastructure will mean that the loss of prime agricultural land will be extremely limited.

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BESS have the potential to generate noise, primarily due to their cooling systems and components such as invertors and transformers. At this stage, it is considered that operational noise levels at the site would be set in line with local and national planning policies to ensure nearby sensitive receptors are not adversely affected. However, a noise assessment will be undertaken to inform appropriate separation distances from the nearest residential properties and mitigation measures will be incorporated into the design. As a result, the Proposed Development would not result in significant noise impacts.

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Safety measures, including fire safety and flood risk precautions, will be implemented following design best practices.

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The following assessments and surveys are currently being progressed to inform the design and support a future planning application to the Council:

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+ Ecological Assessment Report

+ Biodiversity Net Gain Assessment

+ Landscape and Visual Assessment and Landscape Planting Masterplan

+ Flood Risk Assessment

+ Drainage Strategy

+ Noise Impact Assessment

+ Cultural Heritage Statement

+ Construction Traffic Management Plan

+ Outline Battery Safety Management Plan

+ Trees Survey

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Highways and Access

Access

The site is accessible to vehicles via an existing access track to an unnamed public highway to the south, which will be used during both construction and operation. This will be clearly signposted to ensure that construction traffic travels to and from the site via routes approved by East Devon District Council. Some vehicles associated with the construction of the cable route to the National Grid substation may also use another existing access from the unnamed public highway to the north.

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Technical surveys and assessments remain underway and these in part will determine the final layout.

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A Construction Traffic Management Plan will be prepared to review any potential traffic impacts on local roads caused during construction and propose potential mitigation and management measures to be agreed with the Local Highway Authority.

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Construction vehicles

Construction materials will be delivered by Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGV), with materials sourced from local suppliers wherever possible. Construction vehicles will also use the existing access track to the south, which is already used by large farming vehicles.

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During construction, there may be temporary increases in traffic, noise, and dust, but these impacts will be managed through a Construction Environmental Management Plan.

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If consented, construction is expected to take 18-24 months, during which time, the average frequency of HGV movements to site is expected to be 2 or 3 trips per day.

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Operational vehicles

Traffic during operation will be limited to general maintenance (one or two vehicle movements per month).

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Fire Safety

Battery Safety Management Plan

Broadclyst Energy Storage will submit an initial Outline Battery Safety Management Plan (OBSMP) as part of the planning application. If approved, a more detailed version, the Detailed Battery Safety Management Plan (DBSMP), will be provided to the Council before construction begins. The plans ensure the BESS will be safely managed, minimising risks to people and the environment.

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What Battery Safety Features can we expect?

+ Monitoring Systems: The BESS units will have built-in monitoring to detect any unusual activity and shut down automatically if needed. The system includes both remote and on-site emergency stop mechanisms, automated cooling, and a specialised fire suppression system for Lithium-Ion batteries.

+ Active Ventilation: To prevent the buildup of explosive gases, ventilation systems will activate if any gases are detected.

+ Emergency Water Supply: This will be located on-site to deal with a fire, and any contaminated water will be safely contained in a storage facility and treated before being released or transported away.

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The project will apply for planning permission under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended).

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Please note that the Council are not accepting representations at this stage; however, you will have the opportunity to make a formal representation should the application proceed.

Our pre-application consultation ended on 18 April and we would like to thank everyone who took part.

An information event took place on Wednesday 26 March in Broadclyst for local people to find out about the project.