First Bus to open megawatt battery storage site
The battery storage site is located at the company’s bus depot in Hoeford, Hampshire. Technical details remain scant, but First Bus confirmed that it will recycle batteries from its own electric fleet and use these to expand its battery storage capacity over time. The firm added that the new site will provide enough space for up to three bus batteries capable of storing as much as 1 MW of power.
First Bus has said that it also aims to begin work on an ‘even larger’ battery storage unit at its depot in Aberdeen, Scotland by the end of this year – and will continue looking to build more facilities over time. The announcement coincides with an investment by FirstGroup (First Bus’ parent company) into Palmer Energy Technology (PETL), a manufacturer of battery energy storage systems. All of this is part of a wider goal by First Bus to operate a ‘net zero’ commercial bus fleet by 2035, which has so far replaced 1200 diesel buses with EVs.
Speaking on the investment, Palmer Energy founder Dr Andy Palmer said: “With buses at the forefront of the transition to electric vehicles and net-zero transportation, I’m delighted to welcome investment from FirstGroup Energy Ltd, as well as Barclays and Oxford University, to advance development of next generation control systems. This will allow us to accelerate our business and give the UK a leading position in battery energy storage system technology.”
FirstGroup investment director, Faizan Muhammad, added: “This investment continues our strategy of backing new and innovative companies aimed at supporting our long-term public commitment of achieving a zero-emission commercial bus fleet by 2035. We’re really excited about this new chapter in our decarbonisation journey and look forward to working closely with PETL to continue developing this technology.”
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