COMMUNITY UPDATE | OFGEM Window 1 of Long Duration Electricity Storage Cap and Floor Scheme & Loch Kemp PSH & Loch Na Cathrach (Red John) PSH
On Friday 26 June 2026 OFGEM published its minded-to decisions for Window 1 of the Long Duration Electricity Storage (LDES) cap and floor scheme. 16 schemes across the UK were selected; 3 fell to the Highlands, and the Great Glen.
Of these (locally) >
- Loch Kemp PSH is subject of a National Planning Enquiry, and the outcome is not yet determined. ECU00003398
- Loch Kemp/Loch Ness PSH, under Statera (as Developers), however was supported by OFGEM (as of 26 June 2026).
- For the full consultation of the 16 selected schemes see: Window 1: Minded-to decisions – Long Duration Electricity Storage
- Loch Na Cathrach (Red John) PSH was granted (Conditional) Planning Consent by the ECU on 07 June 2021. ECU0000072807
- Loch Na Cathrach/Loch Ness PSH (Red John), under Statkraft (as Developers), however did not feature among the 16 selected developments supported by OFGEM (as of 26 June 2026).
- Consequently Loch Na Cathrach/Loch Ness (Red John) / Statkraft’s Community Information Day planned for Thursday 02 July 2026 is postponed/pulled.
- For full information see: Project updates | Loch na Cathrach Pumped Storage Hydro – Statkraft UK
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For more information see Ofgem’s Press Release (26 June 2026)
Ofgem boosts long duration storage to secure more homegrown energy for customers
Ofgem boosts long duration storage to secure more homegrown energy for customers | Ofgem
Ofgem has today (Friday 26 June 2026) marked a significant step forward in the development of long duration electricity storage (LDES) in Great Britain, moving the programme from eligibility assessment into the next phase of project selection.
Following a rigorous eligibility assessment process, a Minded‑to-Decision list has been published, with Ofgem setting out which projects have been provisionally selected to receive support under the LDES cap and floor scheme.
Ofgem has identified 16 projects creating an LDES portfolio which is anticipated to reduce costs by alleviating pressure on transmission and distribution networks and minimising the need for costly investment in new infrastructure or constraint management.
The selected projects comprise four technologies – pumped storage hydro (PSH), compressed air energy storage (CAES), lithium-ion batteries and vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFB) – and are geographically spread across Scotland and England, with one proposed VRFB project selected in north Wales.
LDES refers to energy storage systems that can store and release electricity for long periods, defined as eight hours or more. These systems help balance the supply and demand of electricity, especially when using renewable energy sources like wind and solar, which can be unpredictable.
Ofgem will now gather stakeholder views on the proposed decisions to ensure they deliver the best outcomes and value for money for business and consumers.
Akshay Kaul, Director General for Infrastructure at Ofgem, said: “Ofgem is creating the right infrastructure for renewable energy to thrive and improve our energy security and reduce reliance on global gas markets.
“It’s fantastic to see such a wide range of technologies coming forward. This takes us a step closer towards the long-duration energy storage we need in a clean power system to maintain secure supply during periods of cold, hot, still or cloudy weather when solar or wind power output may be low.”
Energy Minister, Michael Shanks, said: “Forty years after the country’s last pumped storage facility, this government is getting Britain building again.
“The lesson from the conflict in Iran is clear: Britain cannot afford to remain at the mercy of volatile fossil fuel markets and leave families exposed to the next price shock.
“That is why we are further and faster in delivering the clean power mission by rolling out a new generation of pumped hydro storage and state-of-the-art batteries – making more of the clean, homegrown power we already produce, cutting waste, lowering bills and strengthening our energy security.”
The consultation will remain open until August 7, with final determinations expected later this year. Unsuccessful projects may have the opportunity to participate in further selection windows – the design of which Ofgem expect to consult upon later this year – or proceed as merchant projects.
Today’s announcement represents a key milestone in the delivery of a framework designed to unlock investment in large‑scale, LDES technologies that will play a critical role in the transition to a low‑carbon electricity system.
LDES will play a key part in an increasingly intermittent generation system, providing consumers with the electricity they need even when the wind isn’t blowing or the sun isn’t shining.
The publication of the Minded-to-Decision list gives developers and investors greater clarity on the projects expected to receive support, helping to build confidence across the sector and supply chain.
Ofgem is now seeking views from industry participants, consumer groups and other stakeholders on the Minded‑to Decisions. Feedback will inform the regulator’s final determination on which projects will be selected to receive cap and floor support.
View Long duration electricity storage window 1: minded-to decisions.
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On Friday 26 June 2026 the Guardian reported:
First major hydropower projects in Great Britain in 40 years given go-ahead
Three pumped storage hydroelectric power station sites in Scotland on list of 16 long-duration electricity storage plans
Great Britain’s first new major hydropower projects in more than 40 years are expected to move ahead after the energy regulator gave a provisional green light to three proposals as part of a plan to reduce the country’s reliance on energy imports.
All three of the new pumped storage hydroelectric power station projects are due to be built in northern Scotland, where the region’s lochs will act as natural reservoirs to serve the hydropower stations.
The Loch Kemp project, developed by Statera Energy, plans to draw water from Loch Ness, and SSE’s Coire Glas project expects to draw from Loch Lochy between Fort William and Inverness. Gilkes Energy’s Earba project will use Loch Leamhain and Loch Earba to create the UK’s largest pumped storage hydro facility.
They are expected to be built by the early 2030s and will be the first pumped hydro power projects since the Dinorwig hydropower plant in north Wales began operations in 1984.
The power plant, known locally as electric mountain, is able to generate enough electricity to power the equivalent of almost 2 million households in Great Britain in a matter of seconds by using flows of falling water to drive its turbines.
This form of electricity generation has been used in Britain for almost 150 years, as one of the oldest forms of energy storage. When power is abundant, pumped hydropower plants use electricity to pump water from a lower reservoir up to an elevated dam. Later, when power supplies are tight during the evening’s peak power demand, the water is allowed to flow over the turbines, effectively releasing electricity back to the grid.
The energy minister, Michael Shanks, said: “Forty years after the country’s last pumped storage facility, this government is getting Britain building again. The lesson from the conflict in Iran is clear: Britain cannot afford to remain at the mercy of volatile fossil fuel markets and leave families exposed to the next price shock.”
The first new hydropower plants in a generation were named on the energy regulator’s list of 16 provisionally approved projects that are able to store and release electricity for periods of eight hours or more to help Great Britain use more of its renewable energy and reduce its reliance on energy imports.
While most of the long-duration energy storage schemes to receive provisional approval are lithium-ion battery projects, some use alternative storage technologies.
A compressed air energy storage scheme in Tees, developed by TeesCAES, plans to use surplus electricity to compress air to about 70 bar pressure and release the air to spin its generating turbines when electricity supplies are tight.