Coalburn 1: Europe’s largest battery comes online in Scotland.

Coalburn 1 is the first of three UK transmission-connected battery energy storage system (BESS) projects developed by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) to enter commercial operations.

https://www.ess-news.com/2026/08/12/cip-commissions-europes-largest-operational-battery-in-scotland/

The 500 MW/1 GWh Coalburn 1 BESS has entered commercial operations at a former coal mining site in Scotland, according to CIP. The developer claims the project is now the largest operational BESS in Europe.

Construction at the Coalburn 1 site in South Lanarkshire, near Glasgow, began in November 2023 according to CIP’s local development partner Alcemi. CIP divested 50% of the project to insurer Axa IM Alts in April 2025.

Revenues for Coalburn 1 will include a 10-year optimization agreement with SSE, plus a 15-year capacity market contract covering 300 MW of power output, plus a seven-year contract covering 75 MW. The project will be managed by independent renewables company RES, which signed an agreement in July 2025 to manage the site.