Arsenal FC to power Emirates Stadium through battery storage system

Arsenal FC has become the first UK football club to install a battery storage system, which will store enough electricity to power the club's 60,000-seater stadium for a 90-minute match.


Unveiled today (26 November), the 3MW system will enable Arsenal to cut electricity bills and avoid peak power prices. Developed by Pivot Power, the 3.7MWh system can power the club’s Emirates Stadium in North London for an entire match – equivalent to powering 2,700 homes for two hours.

The Emirates was the first Premier League stadium to source 100% of its electricity needs from renewables, after the Arsenal extended its supplier deal with Octopus Energy in 2017. Since agreeing to the supplier partnership with Octopus Energy in 2016, Arsenal has cut its carbon footprint by 7 million kilogrammes, equivalent to filling the Emirates Stadium almost four times.

Arsenal’s managing director Vinai Venkatesham said: “This is a big step forward for us in being efficient with energy usage and it builds on our work in reducing our carbon footprint as an organisation. We have been powered by green energy since 2016 thanks to Octopus Energy, and the battery storage system will support our efforts further.”

Funded through investment from Downing LLP, the system will be automatically traded and optimised by Open Energi and has secured a frequency response (FFR) contract from National Grid. Pivot Power will operate the system for 15 years and an additional 1MW of storage will be added next year.

Double Pivot

Pivot Power is also developing the world’s first 2GW network of grid-scale batteries and rapid electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, set to be installed in the UK at a cost of £1.6bn.

The £1.6bn project will see 45 new battery sites developed nationwide at electricity sub-stations, forming the world’s biggest network of grid-scale 50MW batteries. The batteries will collectively store enough electricity to supply 235,000 average homes for a day once a full roll-out is complete.

Commenting on the unveiling, Minister for Energy and Clean Growth Claire Perry said: “The UK is certainly not being left-back on the bench, with Arsenal truly moving the goal-posts when it comes to energy efficiency at Emirates Stadium.

“This project scores the hat-trick of tackling peak prices and storing clean energy, with the goal of selling back energy to the grid at peak times. A more flexible energy grid could save the UK billions and this kind of cutting-edge technology shows companies the potential of being part of the beautiful game of smarter energy systems.”

Elsewhere in the Premier League, newly-promoted Newcastle United is pursuing a “carbon positive” status and recently installed a combined heat and power (CHP) system at its own St James Park Stadium, to reduce the football club’s emissions by more than 390 tonnes every year.

On the back of Manchester City Football Club partnering with an energy storage company Eaton earlier this year, edie took a closer look at how the club incorporated sustainable business practices into its multi-billion pound transformation, in line with its rise up the Premier League table.

In the Netherlands, Eaton has worked with car manufacturer Nissan to install and operate a battery storage system at the Johan Cruijff Arena in Amsterdam.

Comprising of batteries from 148 Nissan leaf EVs, the system can store enough energy to power 7,000 Amsterdam households for one hour. The system comes with a 10-year warranty, although numerous developers involved in the project believe it could operate for at least five years beyond the timeframe.

Matt Mace

Comments (1)

  1. Keiron Shatwell says:

    What about leading the way and installing solar panels on the roof of the stadium? There’s a lot of square meters up there that could actually generate enough power for the entire stadium and probably help power the homes around the ground. How’s that for giving back to the community?

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