UK-based battery storage asset owner and operator Varco Energy has announced the acquisition of a 48MW battery energy storage system (BESS) project located in Cornwall, south-west England. The project, known as Sambar BESS, was acquired from Carlton Power.
Carlton Power had secured planning consent for the Sambar BESS project in October 2022. Varco Energy plans to develop the battery asset and aims to bring it online by the second quarter of 2025. Once operational, the Sambar BESS will provide essential flexibility to future-proof the UK's electricity system.
Varco Energy, funded by Adaptogen Capital, sees this acquisition as a strategic move towards supporting the UK's transition to a net-zero power system. Varco Energy director James Mills stated, “The UK needs to invest up to £11bn in storage assets by 2035 to deliver on its net-zero ambitions, and Varco Energy is at the forefront of this transition. We will now focus on the operational integration of the project into our broader portfolio, with a targeted energisation in the second quarter of 2025.”
Keith Clarke, founder and chief executive of Carlton Power, expressed satisfaction with the sale, stating, “Battery energy storage schemes of this scale are essential to the security and resilience of the UK's energy system and will support the energy transition and the further growth of renewable power generation.”
