Norfolk MP seeks assurances over safety of Rushall battery farm
Battery energy storage systems (BESS) are used to hold electricity generated by renewables like solar and wind farms, which can then be put into the grid when needed.But the lithium used in the batteries can cause explosions if it overheats.A fire at a small BESS site in Liverpool in 2020 took fire crews 59 hours to extinguish, whilst a blaze at a huge site in California was left to burn on the advice of fire experts.
Ramsay said he would speak to Norfolk's chief fire officer about the proposed site at Rushall, as well as one that would be part of the East Pye solar farm.He said he wanted to know how fire risks could be managed and assessed, and how fire crews might access remote, countryside sites:"I don't want to scaremonger on that at all, but I do take the questions residents are raising seriously."
Asher Minns, from the Tyndall Centre For Climate Research at the University of East Anglia, said data on BESS sites across the world "wasn't great" but he believed the risk of fire was "very low"."There's better [safety] guidelines coming out all the time," he added.Elmya – which has yet to submit its plans for the site at Rushall – said it would have "advanced monitoring, early fire detection, and suppression systems".Development director James Innes insisted the project's safety was "paramount" and the company would be "following National Fire Chiefs Council guidance".A Norfolk Fire and Rescue spokesperson said: "We continue to proactively work with site designers and operators of battery energy storage systems to help them improve both their site designs, and the accessibility for firefighting. "This is to reduce and mitigate for the likelihood of any fire on their premises."
Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Finextra
30 minutes ago
- Finextra
Broadridge acquires Signal
Global Fintech leader Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE: BR), today announced that it has acquired Signal, a leader in transforming customer communications for financial services and social sector firms in the UK. 0 "This is an important step toward globalizing Broadridge's digital communications solutions to better serve our clients with operations outside North America," said Mike Sleightholme, President of Broadridge International. "The combination of Signal's digital-first communications and strong relationships with UK financial services firms along with our proven scale and regulatory domain expertise transforms our ability to serve our global clients and extend our footprint in Europe." Signal provides a full suite of design, technology and consulting services that support omni-channel communications for financial services and other firms. Its proprietary technology and deep digital expertise help clients power their shift from legacy print to drive digitization and enhance client engagement. Signal provides an integrated shared service model to support in-house teams alongside specialist managed services, including fully outsourced print production. "Growing expectations from both customers and regulators are driving the need to modernise and digitise the customer and investor experience," said Barney Hosey, CEO of Signal. "Broadridge is a trusted and transformative partner to clients who shares our commitment to innovation. Its focus on providing a more holistic global customer communications experience, while delivering greater value to clients means we are very much aligned. The leadership team and I are delighted to be joining Broadridge and enabling the expansion of its global capabilities to serve customers and investors around the world." Serving nearly every major financial institution in North America and many globally, Broadridge processes billions of critical communications annually. To meet rising regulated communication and compliance requirements efficiently and securely, Broadridge leverages technology and deep regulatory expertise across global jurisdictions to ensure clients maintain compliance as rules evolve. Broadridge's communications and customer engagement platform delivers personalized, compelling digital and print experiences to attract, onboard, engage, and retain customers across industries including financial services, healthcare, utilities, telecom, and insurance. The transaction is not expected to have a material impact on Broadridge's financial results.
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
UK independent space agency scrapped to cut costs
The UK Space Agency will cease to exist as an independent entity to cut the cost of bureaucracy, the government said on will be absorbed by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) in April government says this will save money, cut duplication and ensure ministerial one leading space scientist said the move would lead to disruption in the short term and the UK losing ground to its international competitors over the long run. Dr Simeon Barber of the Open University feared that scrapping UKSA would lead to Britain's space sector "losing focus"."Around the world countries have been recognising the importance of space by setting up national space agencies, and for the government to be scrapping ours seems like a backward step," he said. UKSA was created 2010 in response to the growing importance of the sector to the economy. The development of small spacecraft, satellites and space instrumentation is a field that the UK excels at, thanks in part due to the agency. Its role is to develop the country's space strategy, coordinate research and commercial activities and liaise with international partners. During its tenure UKSA saw a UK astronaut, Tim Peake launched into space to work on the International Space Station and the development of Britain's own capability to launch small satellites and other small payloads into space from space sector generates an estimated £18.6bn a year and employs 55,000 people across the agency, its budget and activities will now be absorbed into DSIT. It follows a commitment from Prime Minister Keir Starmer to reduce costs and cut the number of arms length government bodies, known as quangos (quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations), starting with the abolition of NHS England announced in minister Sir Chris Bryant said: "Bringing things in house means we can bring much greater integration and focus to everything we are doing while maintaining the scientific expertise and the immense ambition of the sector."The merger will see the agency become a unit within DSIT, staffed by experts from both organisations and retaining the UKSA supporters of the space agency, such as Dr Barber fear that this will mean a loss of the agency's dynamic, proactive approach which has proved to be so successful for the UK's space science and its space industry. He said there was a danger of moving to more bureaucratic, less incentivised ways of working, which he said were more typical of government departments, and were the reason the agency was created in the first place."It feels like we're going to get stuck in the mud again," he told BBC News.
Auto Car
3 hours ago
- Auto Car
Vauxhall reveals 789bhp Corsa – it's faster than a Bugatti Chiron
The brand's 'Vizor' fascia has also been redesigned. While current models feature a gloss black panel, on the concept it's transparent with daytime-running lights behind. The griffin motif now also lights up. Adams said this is an element that Vauxhall is exploring for production: 'We've got a clear philosophy, but you want to find fresh new ways to refresh it, revive it, but that is still anchored in good core DNA. So we're not throwing everything away every time we want to refresh it. And that's just an example where we're exploring.' While the interior is a stripped-out affair, it still houses potential production elements, said Adams. The bucket seats, for example, are split in two, with the backrest hung from the roll-cage and the seat attached to the floor. This makes 'one of the heaviest parts of the car much lighter' than in today's EVs – 'a fundamental rethink'. In an effort to reduce the driver's mental load, the concept doesn't contain any screens. Only a handful of physical buttons are present for key functions. Future of GSE In July, Vauxhall relaunched the GSE sub-brand as a badge for performance-honed EVs with the 276bhp Mokka GSE. This Corsa concept, however, moves the dial even further and shows where Vauxhall wants to take GSE, said Adams. It gets 789bhp and 590lb ft of torque from a dual-motor powertrain, weighs just 1170kg and is claimed to hit 62mph in 2.0sec – faster than a Bugatti Chiron. Top speed is capped at 199mph. These figures are hypothetical, however, given that the car can be driven only in the Gran Turismo video game. However, Adams argued that the figures are 'realistic' and could 'in theory' make it to a production model, saying: 'If you were going to get a max but be on the realistic end of max, then they are believable figures.'
