The Scottish Government has been urged to bring forward safety regulations for battery storage sites amid fire fears as almost 80 applications have been lodged to build the country’s largest energy units over the past three years.
New figures released by the Scottish Government show 78 separate applications have been lodged across the country since May 2022 to build the most powerful battery energy storage systems that would exceed 50MW.
But despite being the largest developments of their kind to be connected to the National Grid’s transmission network, 75 (96%), haven’t required an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).
Nine of these applications have been in South Lanarkshire, while eight have been lodged in the Highlands, seven in East Lothian, and five across Aberdeenshire.
Any development that would generate more than 50MW needs permission directly from the Scottish Government to be built under the Electricity Act 1989.
Applications below 50MW are determined under the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997, and are usually a matter for local councils.
But following several fires across Scotland, including at Rothienorman in Aberdeenshire, and in Kilwinning, North Ayrshire, North East MSP Douglas Lumsden has called for enforceable regulations for the design and construction of the storage systems.
Scottish Conservative North East MSP Douglas Lumsden said: “I’m extremely concerned about the safety of these proposed battery energy storage sites following a string of fires across both my region and the rest of Scotland.
“There are no laws that specifically govern the fire safety of battery energy storage systems which is why both of Scotland’s governments must come together to address this major issue.
“There needs to be legislation to regulate the battery storage industry to ensure the safety of the public is at the heart of these rising number of applications.
“In many cases, communities are being steamrolled into industrial zones through an unjust transition which residents are overwhelmingly opposed to.
“There is also currently no mandatory consultation with the fire service on the development of these sites which heightens the risk of catastrophic incidents occurring.
“It’s vital the Scottish Government works alongside the UK Government to ensure proper and robust safety regulations are brought forward to protect communities from these often-dangerous pieces of infrastructure.”
