A new battery storage facility is being planned for the Oxfordshire countryside.
Applicant Penso Power wants to build the development near the Cowley Substation off Blackberry Lane near Greater Leys.
The facility is being proposed to ease to ease the pressure on the national electricity grid, with the application's planning papers saying it will "ensure long term sustainable local and regional power distribution".
The scheme, submitted to South Oxfordshire District Council, consists of 172 battery infrastructure containers, two 240,000 litre water tanks, two spare parts containers, a control room, switchroom, and welfare container.
A total of 18 CCTV posts are also proposed with a perimeter post and wire security fence up to three metres in height surrounding the equipment.
Seven more CCTV posts are to be installed in the secondary substation/transformer compound adjacent to the north-west.
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In the application's planning statement, it said: “The development of energy storage facilities such as this allow the local Grid network to operate more efficiently; taking excess energy, storing it and releasing it onto the network when the grid needs it at times of peak demand.
“The site is well screened by surrounding hedge boundaries and is already visually characterised by existing energy infrastructure.
“Once established and mature, the landscape proposals help mitigate the adverse effects of the development and would also result in beneficial effects to the landscape character and visual amenity of the area.”
It added: “The proposal would retain the existing nature and habitat features of value by setting the proposed equipment away from the existing mature hedgerows.
“Additional planting is also proposed, which will help to deliver ecological net gains of 16.62 per cent ecological net gain to habitat units and a 26.75 per cent ecological net gain of hedgerow units.
“The nearest dwelling to the site is 600m from the proposed development. The proposal will use mechanical ventilation equipment to cool the infrastructure during the operational phase of development.
"However, with such physical separation and when taking into consideration background noise levels at the nearest residential receptor, the submitted Noise Assessment concludes that the proposal will generate noise that is below the measured background noise level at each of the closest residential receptors.
“The total number of vehicle movements (deliveries and staff combined) will therefore be in the region of 14 per day.
“This report concludes that the proposal would comply with prevailing planning policy framework for the development plan for South Oxfordshire and where there is non-compliance with prevailing green belt policy, there are indeed ‘very special circumstances’ which outweigh the policy confliction with respect to the Green Belt and therefore weigh heavily in support of planning permission being granted.”
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About the author
Toby is a senior reporter who has a particular interest in covering planning and local government.
He joined in September 2024 having been a reporter at the Hampshire Chronicle for three years.
Toby studied at the University of Brighton and can be found on X through the handle @JournoToby
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