Firm previously known as Green Frog Power announces rebrand and renewed focus on battery storage following acquisition by IMCO last year
A fresh player has emerged in Britain’s burgeoning energy storage market, with Pulse Clean Energy today announcing ambitions to develop and operate 1GW of grid-scale battery storage sites nationwide to support the expansion of renewable energy capacity.
The company, previously known as Green Frog Power Ltd, has rebranded as Pulse Clean Energy after being snapped up by asset manager the Investment Management Corporation of Ontario (IMCO) last October, and has added a number of experienced faces to its executive team.
Under its former guise the firm developed energy storage and gas-fuelled peaking plants, but is now narrowing its focus on battery storage under its new owners, which are reportedly planning to invest $500m over the next several years to expand its global project pipeline.
After acquiring Pulse Clean Energy last year, IMCO touted the growing global utility scale battery storage market as a “trillion dollar” opportunity.
Pulse Clean Energy had previously invested in nine diesel generation sites in the UK, which it said were now being decommissioned and repurposed as battery storage assets.
Former RWE npower CEO Paul Massara has joined as chairman of the board alongside Alison Kay, former group general counsel and company secretary at National Grid, who has been appointed non-executive director.
Meanwhile, Matthew Mendes, a former executive at renewable energy semiconductor firm Valence Energy Capital, has been appointed Pulse Clean Energy’s CEO and tasked with “executing and growing the substantial pipeline of battery storage projects in development”.
Mendes said the firm’s rebrand was “a reflection of the new path Pulse Clean Energy is taking”.
“Through innovation in energy storage and optimisation, it is our ambition to enable the smooth transition to a zero carbon energy network,” he said. “We pride ourselves in doing this differently, as our approach is rooted in data and insight to ensure a seamless collaboration across the energy system.”
In related news, rival flexible generation developer Conrad Energy today announced plans to use Tesla Megapack batteries within its 26MWh battery storage portfolio for sites located in the south west of England.
The firm – which boasts 600MW of operational battery storage and flexible generation capacity in the UK, alongside a growing 1GW pipeline of solar and storage projects – said the move would further strengthen its ambitions to become a leading flexible grid services provider in the UK.
Steven Hardman, Conrad Energy’s chief operating officer, said: “Partnering with Tesla on these battery storage projects shows our commitment to supporting the growth of energy storage solutions which are critical as we transition to a real time power market with high levels of variable renewable energy.”
And in further energy storage news, Balance Power this week announced that it had secured planning approval for a 50MW battery storage project in Upton Lane, Hampshire.
The company said the latest approval meant it has now taken 32 energy projects through to planning consent, delivering 352MW of capacity. A further 1,200MW of battery storage and solar projects are under development nationwide, it added.
“Our mission is to power a carbon-free future for everybody, without sacrificing the unique biodiversity and beauty here in the UK,” said Phil Thompson, CEO at Balance Power. “As environmental pressures are rightly leading to outdated, polluting generators being decommissioned, it is vital these old sources of energy are replaced with a mix of clean and renewable alternatives.”
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