VFB LEAD: The World’s Largest Solar-Powered Flow Battery
Utilising funding awarded by the UK Government’s Department of Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) as part of the Longer Duration Energy Storage Competition (LODES), Invinity are working to deploy the largest battery ever manufactured in the UK, a 30 MWh Vanadium Flow Battery.
Find out more about the groundbreaking VFB LEAD project below.
The Project
The Vanadium Flow Battery Longer Duration Energy Asset Demonstrator (“VFB LEAD”) project will see a 30 MWh Invinity VFB system deployed at a key node on the National Grid. The battery, which will be capable of delivering more than 7 MW of power on demand, will utilise the fast-response and high-throughput characteristics of Invinity’s battery technology to provide a broad range of services to the grid. The battery’s operation will provide vital flexibility to the UK electricity network and help accelerate the UK’s transition to an energy system supplied by low carbon, domestic energy sources such as wind and solar power.
Powering Britain from Britain
With a capacity equivalent to the daily energy use of more than 3,500 homes, this battery will be the largest ever to be manufactured in the UK. Approximately six times larger than Invinity’s battery system at the Energy Superhub Oxford, it will also be one of the world’s largest flow batteries. Furthermore, with the ability to deliver full power for a discharge duration of over 4 hours, it is expected to be the largest long duration battery asset connected to the UK grid.
A safe, sustainable and robust alternative to lithium-ion
Invinity’s cutting-edge Vanadium Flow Battery (VFB) technology is a leading alternative to better known lithium-ion batteries as it is safer (they cannot catch fire), more durable (they do not degrade with use) and more than 97% recyclable at the end of their 25+ year life, reducing environmental impacts and disposal costs for project owners.