Thirsk Against Battery Storage

Working to prevent NatPower from developing one of the UK’s largest Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) on greenfield farmland on the edge of the North York Moors

Object to the Planning Application HERE

How to object: A helpful guide

#ThirskIsMighty
#StopTheBatteries

FIND OUT HOW YOU CAN HELP

What’s happening?

One of the UK’s LARGEST Battery Storage plant is to be built in Thirsk

NatPower wants to build one of the UK’s largest Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) on productive farmland just outside of Thirsk.

The 1-Gigawatt plant will host 888 Lithium-ion batteries, and will be seen for miles around due to its location near the famous North York Moors and the popular Sutton Bank, known as “the finest view in England”. Its location on a hillside will ensure that it can be seen for miles around.

Local action group Thirsk Against Battery Storage (TABS) has serious concerns about the suitability of the site, on location, safety, and environmental grounds. We are working to ensure that this plant is not built in this area, but created on brownfield land instead.

One of the UK’s biggest Battery Energy Storage Systems

NatPower is planning many of these sites, with at least two 1GW plants around North Yorkshire.

A constant noise

We believe the constant hum of the batteries will impact the wildlife and people using the public rights of way.

2 transformer substations

Two substations will need to be built to connect the site to the National Grid.
One of these sites will cover approx. 14 acres: the size of 8 football pitches

The scale of the site is vast

If you overlay the footprint of the site on Thirsk town itself, it would cover the vast majority

Visible for miles around

The site is on sloping ground to the North-east of Thirsk, which is visible from numerous significant view points including the North York Moors.

The “finest view in England” will be spoiled forever, impacting tourism and leisure in the area.

Loss of wildlife habitat

The area has been worked as farmland for hundreds of years. It’s a wildlife habitat, home to many species of birds and animals.

We have great concerns that this will be lost forever.

Why is it a problem?

Our group is working to make as many people as possible aware of the issue, in the Thirsk area so that we can protect our countryside and keep Britain farming. This won’t just happen here, but all over the country; this type of development should be on brown field sites

Many people in Thirsk weren’t informed of the consultation, and others found out about it just before the consultation took place. This is despite NatPower planning this project since 2023!

The people of Thirsk have been been poorly informed, and the ‘consultation’ has been inadequate.

We support the move toward net-zero in the right location.

There are many more suitable sites across the UK – so one of our questions is, why don’t the developers want to use those instead?

England’s Finest View… (said James Herriot)

Beautiful unspoiled, rural North Yorkshire
Home to productive arable and pastoral farming land
Spectacular views from the North York Moors escarpment, including Sutton Bank

Could be covered in these…

Over 1000 shipping containers
2 substations
The floodgates to more development may open

How can you help?

Our group is working hard to inform the people of the Thirsk area, including the nearest affected villages of South Kilvington and Felixkirk.

We’ve been engaging with our MP, local Councillors, and North Yorkshire Councillors to gather their support.

Firstly, YOU can help by donating to our GoFundMe campaign, which we’ll use to pay for experts in consultancy and legal advice.
YOU can help by responding the the Planning Application once it is made. We’ll publish details where you can respond to the Application on this site, and also on our Facebook group.
YOU can also help by joining the Facebook group, for discussion and news of local action taking place.