Skip to content

Plans for 'fire-risk' battery station rejected

Daniel Mumby
Local Democracy Reporting Service
Holly Lawton A large group of residents consisting of both adults and children. They are standing in front of the gate that leads into the field where the proposed facility would have been built. The children are holding hand drawn paper signs which say 'save nature'. The sky is grey and cloudy. In the distance you can see a large electricity power line from the neighbouring substation.Holly Lawton
Residents in Frome have won their fight against the proposed battery energy storage site

Plans to build a battery energy storage site near a busy residential area have been rejected over safety concerns.

Somerset Council refused Trina Solar UK HoldCo's application to build the facility on land north of Styles Close in Frome, next to an existing substation.

The move follows residents campaigning against the proposals, claiming they posed a "fire risk and put those living in neighbouring properties in jeopardy".

Councillor Helen Kay told a planning meeting on Tuesday: "The consequences of this going wrong are very high."

Battery storage systems use batteries to store electricity generated at times of low demand, with the operators selling the energy back to the National Grid at peak times.

The proposed facility would have had a capacity of about 30 megawatts.

Holly Lawton A view across the green field where the proposed facility would have been built. There is a small wooden fence splitting the field in two. A brown horse is grazing on grass to the right of the picture. In the distance you can see a large electricity power line from the neighbouring substation.Holly Lawton
This field was was the proposed site of the battery energy storage system

Fletcher Robinson, Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) Somerset trustee, said the planned site would violate guidance by the National Fire Chief Council on public safety.

Speaking at the council's east planning committee, he described the "cramped site" unsuitable.

He said it was based just 41 metres (134ft) away from housing on Styles Close, with a stream on the other side, and an existing electricity substation just yards away.

"There is no lagoon to contain the thousands of litres of water needed to cool the units in the event of a fire, nor is there any space for one," Mr Robinson said.

Google An aerial view showing where the proposed facility would have been built. There is a faint red line outlining a rectangular section of a field, and next to it is the existing electricity substation. There are lots of streets of residential housing nearby.Google
The proposed site for the battery energy storage system, outlined here in red, is just yards away from the existing substation

Anna Sabine, Frome and East Somerset MP, said she was uncomfortable with the plans.

"I do believe we need to transition away from our reliance on fossil fuels, and these facilities can provide a partial solution to this," she said.

"But clearly there are fire risks associated with any battery item, from household batteries setting fire to landfill sites, to e-bikes, vapes and large-scale battery facilities."

Rebecca Bryant-Jefferies, from the Friends of the River Frome charity, added that in the event of the fire, the 10 metre (32ft) buffer zone would be "overwhelmed" with the large amounts of chemicals and water used to extinguish the flames.

Follow BBC Somerset on Facebook and X. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.

More on this story
Related Internet Links