BW ESS & Penso Power enter first of its kind battery storage agreement with Shell

BW ESS, an energy storage owner-operator, along with Penso Power, has entered into a seven-year tolling agreement with Shell Energy Europe Limited for the Bramley battery energy storage system, which is under construction in Hampshire.

This agreement marks the first long-term tolling contract for a single BESS asset in Great Britain. If successful, it could establish a new model for revenue structures that could influence the energy storage market across Europe.

Under the fixed-price tolling contract, Shell will manage the trading of the Bramley BESS across various ancillary services and wholesale markets, ensuring revenue stability for BW ESS and Penso Power.

The Bramley project, featuring a 100MW / 330MWh capacity, is notable for being the first in Europe to use Sungrow’s PowerTitan 2.0 liquid cooled BESS. This system integrates a 2.5MW power conversion system with string inverters and a 5MWh battery in a single container, optimising space usage. The site is poised to become the UK's longest-duration BESS when it begins operations in Q4 of this year.

Erik Strømsø, CEO of BW ESS, commented, "We are thrilled to partner with the highly experienced energy trading team at Shell on this project. Bramley showcases our commitment to advancing energy storage solutions that set the bar for the wider market – while pioneering new models for project financing and operation.”

Richard Thwaites, CEO at Penso Power, added, "We are pleased to continue our relationship with Shell with another innovative contract structure to de-risk revenues and support project funding. The floor contract we agreed with Shell on our Minety battery storage project back in 2020 became a template for the industry and this tolling agreement for Bramley breaks new ground. It represents a coming of age for the battery energy storage sector.”

Rupen Tanna, Head of Power and Systematic Trading at Shell Energy Europe, concluded, “The Bramley battery system is one of the most sophisticated longer-duration assets under construction in the UK and will provide us with unmatched capabilities for portfolio optimisation.”

The formal commencement of the agreement is scheduled for Q4 this year, coinciding with the commissioning of the Bramley project.