Reducing Anglian’s energy costs & it is one of the biggest electricity consumers in the Anglian region. This innovation using storage shows how renewables could substantially reduce Company & environmental costs.

Anglian Water solar power & storage scheme will up energy generation by 80% & create extra revenue stream

Anglian Water is partnering with Open Energi and redT on an integrated energy storage project which will see a 60kW/300kWh redT energy storage machine installed alongside a 450kWp solar panel PV system at one of its water treatment works. Investing in energy storage infrastructure will enable the water company to increase onsite solar generation by 80% at the ‘pathfinder’ site in Norfolk from 248kWp to 450 kWp and also gain access to all available revenues streams within the UK grid services market.

RedT’s energy storage machine will create additional value for Anglian Water by providing real-time balancing services to take advantage of wholesale energy price arbitrage. In total, the project is expected to reduce site electricity costs by 50% per annum by 2040. This will enable the company to store excess solar generated during the day and use it at other times, thereby reducing the site’s reliance on the grid. As the largest power consumer in the East of England, reducing reliance on volatile grid electricity will enable optimisation of a £77 million energy bill, which is one of the company’s most significant operational costs.

Anglian Water has become the first water utility to benefit from AI-powered energy storage infrastructure that offers reliable, renewable ‘baseload’ power. Maximisation of renewables generation and consumption is part of Anglian Water’s strategy for delivering Carbon Neutrality by 2050. Over the next 18 months, the company will be building over 30MWp of solar under a 25-year PPA contract with HBS New Energies & Macquarie Principal Finance. The programme of work will reduce carbon emissions by 15,000 tonnes of CO2e and increase renewables generation by approximately 25%, delivering annual savings in excess of £1 million. This will be followed by a second significant solar programme which will shortly be put out for tender. This additional generation for solar will supplement the increasing amount of renewable power that Anglian Water is generating from its wind turbines and its fleet of Combined Heat and Power engines powered by biogas.

Revenue streams from UK grid services market

In addition to making secure infrastructure returns, the water company will also gain access to all available revenues streams within the UK grid services market providing valuable merchant revenue upside for the project. The machines will optimise energy consumption for the site and stack together several revenue producing grid services, including Firm Frequency Response (FFR), and participation in the Capacity Market (in which flow machines receive the highest possible rating). In addition, the redT system can also be used for behind-the-meter arbitrage, energy trading and emergency site back-up. Click here to read more