| Pumped storage
of energy, making it the largest such scheme in the UK in terms of energy stored. The proposal is to use Loch a’ Bhealaich Leamhain as the upper reservoir and Lochan na h-Earba as the lower reservoir. A tunnel approximately 3km long will connect the two water bodies.
A powerhouse will be constructed on the shore of Loch Earba which will extend deep underground. Commenting on the project, Carl Crompton Managing Director of Gilkes Energy said: “The Earba project is in an excellent location with the geography in the area providing some natural water storage, and allowing the project to be sensitively blended into the landscape.
“By developing and investing in PSH capacity, we
are helping more renewables to be added to the UK System, displacing expensive and carbon-emitting gas generation and ultimately speeding up the transition to a clean, carbon-free economy. We look forward to bringing this ambitious project to fruition.” The Earba Storage development would be a major civil engineering project. It is anticipated that the construction period would last approximately three to four years and the workforce would average 300 to 400 people on-site throughout this construction phase. Public consultations on the project were due to be held as the magazine went to press. Construction work is set to start in summer 2024 on the first pumped storage project in Estonia, with developer Energiasalv announcing it has received an official permit to build the 550MW plant. Named Zero Terrain, the underground project
is set to be constructed in Paldiski with minor environmental and land-use impact. The project will enable deployment of renewable energy generation in the region and will significantly lower consumers’ electricity bills. “Emission-free energy with a high security of supply at an affordable price is only possible with large- scale and long-term energy storage. I am proud that Energiasalv’s Zero Terrain project can provide the region with an energy supply that will meet future requirements,” said Peep Siitam, CEO of Energiasalv. “Considering we are in the middle of an energy crisis; our team is moving at a speed and strength comparable to the water itself.”
Another first was also announced for the Western Australian town of Walpole, which will be home to the state’s first-ever pumped hydro microgrid. A joint project between Western Power, a state government owned corporation responsible for building, maintaining, and operating an electricity network that connects 2.3 million customers to traditional and renewable energy sources, and Western Australian based engineering company Power Research and Development (PRD), the renewable microgrid solution will significantly improve power reliability for Walpole homes and businesses. The solution is much smaller than typical pumped
hydroelectric energy storage schemes. It is referred to as ‘mini hydro’ because it has a capacity of 1.5MW and only requires an incline or drop of 90m. This new technology aims to significantly improve power reliability for the Walpole community with up to 80 per cent of outages expected to be mitigated by the pumped hydro microgrid. Walpole is at the end of a 125km long feeder line
www.waterpowermagazine.com | March 2023 | 37
from Albany that is exposed to the elements and weather events such as bushfires, storms, strong winds and/or falling branches. Improving power reliability in the town is a focus for Western Power and the state government. In early 2022 the project was awarded A$2million as part of the government’s Clean Energy Future Fund. When there is an upstream fault on the feeder line the pumped hydro facility will operate as a microgrid to supply Walpole. It will be connected to the Western Power network and supply power to just over 500 local customers. The microgrid is comprised of two farm dams, a lower dam and an upper dam, connected by a buried glass-fibre reinforced plastic pipe through a pump skid. The system enables potential energy to be stored by pumping water from the lower dam to the upper dam. Energy can then be recovered by releasing the water from the upper dam back to the lower dam through a generator, driving the pump in reverse and producing energy. The generator, connected to the pump, is
interconnected to the main distribution grid to enable the stored energy to be imported or exported from the grid. Solar panels and batteries will power the pumping action and shift the water, making it self-sufficient when required during outages as a result of faults on the main feeder line. The pumped hydro microgrid will enable more
intermittent generation to be installed in the grid and enable consumers to store their surplus renewable generation. The facility will be fully operational by the end of 2023.
Funding for projects
In January, it was announced that the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) has granted €90 million to the System Operator to finance the Salto de Chira energy storage project in Gran Canaria. This financial help represents the European
recognition of a key and essential project to achieve the decarbonisation of the island of Gran Canaria. The specific objective of the ERDF funding is to “create
Below: Western Power crews have completed work on the distribution network, in preparation to connect the Walpole pumped hydro microgrid in Australia f Photo: Jack Goodbody
Above: Marmora Pumped Storage Project in Canada will utilise an inactive iron ore mine that is now an artificial lake
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