UK Army Commissions 1.7GWh/year Solar Project At Larkhill Garrison
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Solar Power Portal.
This is the sub-heading.
The installation spans 2.5 hectares and comprises more than 4,000 PV panels.
These three paragraphs give a few more details.
The project forms part of the Army’s Project Prometheus programme, which is deploying rooftop and ground-mounted solar PV systems across suitable sites on the Army estate. It was delivered by Aspire Defence Services on behalf of the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO).
The Ministry of Defence is also partnered with Great British Energy to deploy solar across its sites.
The commissioning follows an expansion of solar capacity at Larkhill this year through the addition of the ground-mounted array and four rooftop PV installations.
Note.
- Larkhill has a Wikipedia entry.
- Larkhill is part of the Salisbury Plain Training Area, which also has a Wikipedia entry.
- The Salisbury Plain Training Area takes up 11 % of the County of Wiltshire and is as large as the Isle of Wight.
There certainly would appear to be plenty of space for 4,000 solar panels.
Does The Army’s Project Prometheus Programme Include Batteries?
I asked Google AI, the question in the title of this section and received this reply.
The British Army’s Project Prometheus primarily focuses on generating renewable energy through solar PV systems, though specific related net-zero initiatives on the defense estate incorporate separate energy storage components like batteries.
Project Prometheus Overview
Core focus: Deploying ground-mounted and rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) arrays across the military estate.
Main goal: Increase green energy supply, cut carbon emissions, and reduce grid electricity dependency.
Integration with Energy Storage
Solar focus: Primary Project Prometheus installations route generated electricity directly to local military buildings or export surpluses back to the national grid.
Associated storage: While standalone solar arrays under Prometheus distribute power dynamically, separate broader sustainability and pilot schemes across the military net-zero portfolio—such as Project Taurus or thermal storage trials—run alongside it to evaluate localized battery storage capabilities.
Project Prometheus would appear to be a typical well-designed solar power programme.
Project Taurus
Project Taurus has been mentioned and Google AI gave me this overview.
Project Taurus in the UK Ministry of Defence refers to a sustainable energy initiative by the British Army to construct solar-powered carports featuring electric vehicle (EV) charging ports and battery storage, starting at Army Headquarters in Andover.
It looks to me, that Project Taurus could have applications outside the military.
Comet Ridge Lands Gladstone Gas Deal
It is obviously Highview Power’s day, as this project in Queensland, Australia gets five mentions in my Google Alert for Highview Power.
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Industry Queensland.
This is the sub-heading.
Mahalo gas hub developer Comet Ridge has reached a deal with Highview Power to supply the large-scale electricity project it is planning to build at the Aldoga State Development area near Gladstone.
These four paragraphs give a summary of the project.
The volume of gas targeted is 3.6 PJ/a (10 TJ/d) for a minimum of five years.
Highview’s Central Queensland Energy Storage Project is to be constructed in two phases.
Phase 1 consists of a 400MW four-hour battery energy storage system, two 200MW open-cycle gas turbines, a 370MVA synchronous condenser, and associated substations and transmission lines.
Phase 2 will be the build-out of a 200MW 12-hour liquid air energy storage system.
It looks like Highview Power’s battery is one of their larger systems and is a 200 MW/2.4 GWh version.
On Highview Power’s Projects page, this is said under a header of Australia.
Highview is developing a series of base‑load renewable energy power stations in Australia, with planning now underway for three major programmes. In Gladstone, Central Queensland, and Townsville, North Queensland, we are progressing large scale projects combining LDES and short-term battery storage. On the Darwin–Katherine network in the Northern Territory, plans are advancing for an integrated scheme incorporating solar generation, LDES and battery. Together, these initial developments will help Australia meet its target of halving carbon emissions by 2030 and achieving net zero by 2050.
Gladstone is named in this story and on Highview Power’s web site.
Could Highview Power be making a breakthrough in process engineering after Sumitomo’s success at the LNG Terminal at Hiroshima.
Chance For Rail To Distribute Hydrogen And Use It As Alternative Power Supply
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Rail Magazine.
These are the first three paragraphs.
Hydrogen can have a future in logistics as well as being an alternative power source for traction.
Speaking at RAIL Live, Mark Downing, Head of Industrial Energy at Heavy Haul Rail, argued that rail was best suited for the transport of hydrogen.
“Energy has always moved by rail. You’ve got coal, you’ve got fuel, this is the next energy process that can be put onto rail at scale,” he said.
Mark Downing talks a lot of sense.
The article has a heading picture of a HydroFlex or Class 799 train,which is a hydrogen-hybrid train that can be powered by electrification or an onboard hydrogen fuel cell.
I’d certainly like to see a Class 799 train running services on an appropriate branch line. The article suggests the West of Wales, or the North of Scotland.
Charles Calvert, Chief Innovation Officer at Vanguard Sustainable Transport Solutions, gives this view. “I would love to see at least one of those routes get decarbonised by any other measure in the next five years.”
Google AI says this about the range of a HydroFlex train.
The HydroFLEX train, developed by Porterbrook and the University of Birmingham, has a potential range of over 300 miles on a single fill of hydrogen.
The long range would probably allow the refuelling point to be developed at a safe point on the route, where hydrogen could be delivered by rail.
The Birmingham International and Aberystwyth route could be a possible hydrogen route.
- It has a total length of 132.3 miles
- There is no electrification between Aberystwyth and Shrewsbury, which is a distance of 111.2 miles.
- As Aberystwyth station has the Vale of Rheidol steam railway, I suspect that Aberystwyth station would not be an ideal refuelling point.
- But Machynlleth Maintenance Depot could be, although it is 20.7 miles and 35 minutes from Aberystwyth.
- The Aberystwyth and Pwllheli services split and join at Machynlleth station, so could refuelling be combined with the split and join?
- Pwllheli and Machynlleth are 57.8 miles and 150 minutes apart.
The most promising of the English stations would be Birmingham International station, which is shown in this Google Map.
Note.
- Birmingham International station is in the North-West corner of the map.
- The electrified Rugby, Birmingham and Stafford Line runs diagonally through the map.
- In addition to their Aberystwyth/Pwllheli service, there is also a Llandudno Junction service that terminates at Birmingham International.
- I wonder, if there is space South of Coventry Road, to build a combined charging and hydrogen refuelling station, that could refuel all trains terminating at Birmingham International.
As the section without electrification is 111.2 miles on the Aberystwyth service, 148.3 miles on the Pwllheli service and 116.5 miles on the Llandudno Junction service , I suspect that these services could be too far for battery-electric trains, without charging at the Western end.
INTERVIEW – Combining Geothermal Power With Minerals Key To Viability, says GEL CEO
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Renewables Now.
These three paragraphs introduce, this very much a must-read article.
Producing critical minerals such as lithium alongside geothermal electricity generation could make deep geothermal projects economically viable, according to Ryan Law, founder and chief executive of UK deep geothermal firm Geothermal Engineering Ltd (GEL).
Electricity generation on its own is quite challenging economically, but combining that baseload power with commodity pricing from the minerals seems to get these projects relatively easily funded, he told Renewables Now.
Law also pointed out that geothermal electricity generation began in Italy more than 100 years ago, but the geothermal wells there were initially used to extract boric acid. “It’s just interesting that the story started with geothermal power as a sort of mineral extraction process,” he noted
It certainly looks like we’ve gone round in a large virtuous circle.
These are some points from the article.
There Have Always Been Minerals In Geothermal Fluids
But because they were cheap and no-one bothered about them coming from China, nobody thought about mining them.
Oil And Gas Expertise Helps The Geothermal Sector
This is a sentence.
Law emphasised that the geothermal sector needs a lot of equipment and skills from the oil and gas industry, which currently in the UK are concentrated in Aberdeen. He said the UK will need a strong oil and gas industry until geothermal becomes large enough to absorb those jobs.
Law said we mustn’t disband that sector too quickly.
The US Appears To Be Backing The Sector
These are two paragraphs.
Law said he could see the sector scaling significantly within a decade, driven largely by developments in the US. He pointed to a number of big financial raises in the US recently.
“And also that the US government is very behind the mineral production,” Law remarked.
Conclusion
Geothermal energy paired with the mining of rare earth minerals could be a surprising winner in a decarbonising world.
The Anonymous Widower 