Richard Lennox, climate change coordinator (Ardagh Group, Irvine), James Tedd (energy storage specialist, ESB Smart Energy Services), Bishwa Giri, (energy manager, Glass Europe), George Dunlop, (electrical engineering supervisor, Ardagh Group, Irvine), Keith McKenzie (electrical engineering team leader, Ardagh Group, Irvine).
GLASS producer Ardagh Group has implemented a sustainable battery storage system at its container plant in Irvine.
The firm aims to increase resilience and energy security with the move, believed to be a glass industry first. It is also the biggest behind-the-meter storage system in Europe, according to Ardagh.
The Irvine plant requires a reliable energy supply to support the continuous manufacture of glass containers throughout the year. The sustainable battery, supplied by ESB Smart Energy Services, provides the plant with back-up during peak energy consumption and sends energy back to the grid when demand is low.
The solution is a combination of a Tesla battery and a grid-optimising platform. The battery is designed to store energy during periods of low demand and to support demand during intermittent power failures. The grid-optimising platform enables Ardagh to participate in the National Grid’s Firm Frequency Response Service. In practice, the battery reduces the plant’s reliance on the grid and when excess energy stored by the battery is not required, it can be delivered back to the National Grid.
Annelene Fisser, group CSR and sustainability manager at Ardagh Group said, “We are committed to environmental responsibility and sustainable manufacturing processes and had been exploring battery storage solutions for a long time to help us effectively meet these commitments.
“When ESB approached us with its battery storage offering, we felt confident that this would provide the efficient and cost effective solution we were looking for.”
