Decision day for major battery storage plant development near A19 and cherished Hastings Hill

Sunderland City Council’s Planning and Highways Committee will vote on an application for a parcel of agricultural land near the A19 and the ‘National Grid Offerton Substation’.

Plans from Root Power (North) Limited, submitted last year (2024), aimed to set up a “38MW battery energy storage system” at the site near Foxcover Road with associated access, fencing and infrastructure.

Those behind the scheme said battery energy storage systems were a “subset of renewable low carbon forms of energy generation” and a “fundamental aspect of the UK moving towards net zero”.

A design and access statement from developers said the development on Wearside would “store energy in times of an energy surplus and release it back to the grid when demands exceed supply”, to help “balance” the National Grid during periods of high demand.

The development was also described as an “essential component of energy infrastructure, which aid the maintenance of energy security for the area and wider regions.”

During a council public consultation exercise on the plans, 14 objections were lodged raising concerns about impacts on the landscape and the Green Belt, as well as highway and pedestrian safety issues, loss of agricultural land, fire safety and more.

The three city councillors for the Sandhill ward, Margaret Crosby, Paul Edgeworth and Stephen O’Brien, also lodged objections raising a number of concerns and citing conflicts with planning policies.

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Concerns were linked to the design quality of the scheme, impacts on views and “landscape character”, heritage impacts on a Scheduled Ancient Monument, risk to a nearby site of special scientific interest (SSSI), Green Belt impacts, local concerns over fire safety and highway safety issues.

However, Sunderland City Council’s planning department, in a committee report published ahead of a decision-making meeting next week, has recommended the planning application for approval.

Council planners said the plans would “contribute to meeting national net zero targets in relation to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, as part of the wider solution seeking to address climate change”, as well as “contributing towards the council’s low carbon action plan”.

It was noted that plans for the site were “not considered to be inappropriate development”, that there was a “demonstrable unmet need for the type of development proposed” and that the impact on the Green Belt would be “moderate”.

This is due to the “rolling landform, the boundary hedgerow and mature tree belts and proposed planting”, with the development “screened in the main and where visible viewed against a backdrop of existing built form”, planning documents state.

While council planners acknowledged the proposal would “cause a level of harm to the landscape character and protected views”, they added the battery energy storage system would “not be particularly intrusive and [would] result in a minimal amount of harm to the landscape”.

On heritage impacts, it was noted that the development would result in “low to moderate level of harm to the significance of the Hastings Hill Round Barrow SAM (Scheduled Ancient Monument)”.

The council committee report adds: “The applicant has secured a grid connection with the National Grid and demonstrated that there are no other less sensitive sites available / suitable to accommodate the development proposed.

“Furthermore, the landscape is largely isolated to views within close proximity to the site due to existing and proposed planting.

“The development would be time limited to 40 years at which point the site would be decommissioned and the site restored.

“Significant Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) would be delivered within the application site, which would provide noticeable and beneficial improvements for the area.

“This is also a substantial benefit of the proposed development, which attracts significant weight in its favour.

“The proposed development would also have no other unacceptable impact in relation to highway and pedestrian safety, land contamination, ecology matters, flooding / drainage, and archaeology subject to the discharge of, and compliance with, recommended conditions.”

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Several plans for battery energy storage systems have been considered by North East councils in recent months.

Plans from Whirlwind Energy Storage Limited for a development near West Boldon Substation were refused by South Tyneside Council’s Planning Committee back in 2024, but the plans were later approved by a planning inspector after developers lodged an appeal.

Sunderland City Council’s Planning and Highways Committee also recently approved plans from Newton Energi for a battery energy storage development near the roundabout connecting the A183 and the A19.

The latest development on Wearside is from a separate applicant and on a separate site, south of the recently approved Sunderland development.

Root Power (North) Limited, the applicant for the latest scheme, said it aims to tackle a “significant lack of network capacity around the UK which can hamper the use and take up of renewable energy generation such as wind turbines and solar arrays”.

It was argued that battery storage developments aim to “increase this capacity allowing more renewable energy to be brought online”.

The design and access statement adds: “The benefits of the proposed development are substantial and are as follows […] reduced energy bills by undercutting gas-fired generators, which purchase expensive natural gas from other countries.

“Increased energy security [and] improved grid reliance – mitigating the risk of a blackout.

“The application could provide power to a plethora of homes in the Sunderland area.

“[It would also] enable an increase in renewable energy by smoothing the peaks and troughs in demand and supply[…] directly supporting Sunderland’s climate emergency.

“A general assumption has concluded that the increased energy demand means we may need to triple the number of overhead and pylons. Battery storage can help to prevent and mitigate this.”

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Developers added the plans would have economic benefits including generating construction jobs, further jobs in the operation of the development and training opportunities.

Proposed equipment on the site includes a substation, switch room, ‘battery clusters’ and other structures, as well as fire safety technology and measures to “isolate any contaminated water from the general flow” in the event of a fire.

The design and access statement added access is proposed from an unnamed road adjacent to Foxcover Road, to the west of the site, and that the development site will have security fencing and CCTV.

It was noted that the point of access “can facilitate larger vehicles during the construction phase of the development” and once the battery energy storage system is operational, the site will be visited for “maintenance purposes only.”

A decision on the development will be made by councillors on the Planning and Highways Committee at a meeting on Monday, June 9, at City Hall.

The meeting is scheduled to start at 5.30pm and will be open to the public.

For more information on the planning application, visit Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website and search reference: 24/02111/FUL