Battery firm's bold plans to 'bring 1,000 jobs' to Scotland's Central Belt
Invinity Energy Systems has said it could bring the jobs to its Motherwell and Bathgate sites
A battery firm has said that it could “bring 1,000 jobs” to the Central Belt if it is accepted onto a UK government scheme.
Invinity Energy Systems has said it could bring the jobs to its Motherwell and Bathgate sites if it is given support through the Long Duration Electricity Storage (LDES) cap and floor scheme.
The company’s chief executive Jonathan Marren said the firm could take on local people, but also those who have lost their jobs at Grangemouth and who are leaving the oil and gas industry.
Kirsteen Sullivan, the Labour MP for Bathgate and Linlithgow, urged regulator Ofgem, which will deliver the scheme on behalf of the UK government, “to back British manufacturing and support the growth of jobs across the Central Belt of Scotland”.
Invinity makes vanadium flow batteries, which can store electricity for the grid. This could be particularly useful for storing wind energy overnight for the public to use the next day.
The cap and floor scheme means developers have a guaranteed minimum income, with a limit on revenues.
Energy storage would allow electricity from wind farms which is not immediately needed to be stored for the future. This would also stop the UK government having to pay wind farms to turn off when there is too much electricity for the grid to handle.
Mr Marren said: “Battery storage is what solves our energy crisis and enables us to then sort of solve our manufacturing crisis, only if you can store the power overnight.”
He said the main competitor for the scheme was from China, adding: “There is basically Chinese lithium batteries, and then, effectively, very little other technology other than us at any any form of scale.
“Effectively, what we're doing is competing against Chinese technology. And therein lies the challenge. Because [the Chinese] technology which will ultimately, if it's deployed under the grid, will create no jobs whatsoever in the UK.
“And there is always a risk that there are ways of controlling that which I'm not sure our British grid would want to be controlled by Chinese technology. So there's an interesting conundrum there.
“What we're arguing is that if we are successful under this, we could create up to 1,000 jobs in between Bathgate and Motherwell, between our two sites.”
Mr Marren claimed this would generate “north of £1 billion of revenue.” He said Invinity would bring engineering jobs for graduates, apprentices and more experienced workers.
Local MP Ms Sullivan said: “When [energy] minister [Michael] Shanks and I visited Invinity at the start of the year, I saw first hand the skilled work undertaken at their plant. Green industries are an integral part of Scotland’s industrial economy and future.
“As Invinity is the only UK-based battery manufacturer participating in the new Cap & Floor scheme, Ofgem has the opportunity to back British manufacturing and support the growth of jobs across the Central Belt of Scotland.
“We must end our reliance on international gas markets prices to ensure bills come down and stay down. To achieve this, we need batteries to capture renewable energy. We can do it here in Scotland and deliver hundreds of skilled jobs if only we choose.
“Delivering British contracts for British companies to manufacture and deploy in Scotland makes sense for our energy security, job security and supports our green manufacturers. Bathgate and West Lothian has a proud industrial tradition and can have a strong industrial future.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said:
“The Scottish Government welcomes any investment to create jobs and support Scotland’s net zero targets. We support the UK Government’s cap and floor scheme, which will help unlock the full generation and economic potential of long duration electricity storage in Scotland.
“The Scottish Government continues to engage with Ofgem to encourage the efficient consideration of applications.”
A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson said:
“Storing energy is key to reaching our 2030 clean power mission and we are reversing a legacy that has seen no new long-duration storage built for forty years.
“The cap and floor scheme will support large projects which can provide continuous energy over at least eight hours when the grid requires it.
“Ofgem is independently running this scheme and will decide on the best projects to support, with updates in due course.”
An Ofgem spokesperson said: “Unlocking investment in Long Duration Energy Storage (LDES) is key to decarbonising the power system. Building on our successful interconnector cap and floor regime, we’re developing a framework that protects consumers while attracting investors. Each application is reviewed thoroughly, and we expect to provide an update next summer.”
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