From PV Magazine on 12 August below and, above, the zero-level MSM coverage:

The 500 MW/1 GWh Coalburn 1 BESS has entered commercial operations at a former coal mining site in Scotland, according to CIP. The project is now the largest operational BESS in Europe.

Construction at the Coalburn 1 site in South Lanarkshire, near Glasgow, began in November 2023 according to CIP’s local development partner Alcemi. CIP divested 50% of the project to insurer Axa IM Alts in April 2025.

Revenues for Coalburn 1 will include a 10-year optimization agreement with SSE, plus a 15-year capacity market contract covering 300 MW of power output, plus a seven-year contract covering 75 MW. The project will be managed by independent renewables company RES, which signed an agreement in July 2025 to manage the site.

Coalburn 1 is the first in a trio of 1 GWh BESS projects CIP is developing in Scotland. Coalburn 2 and Devilla are also being built as transmission-connected assets. Battery technology provider e-STORAGE, a subsidiary of Canadian Solar, is supplying all three projects. The fund divested a stake in Devilla in June, sharing risk with outside funds. https://www.pv-magazine.com/2026/08/12/europes-largest-battery-comes-online-in-scotland/

Sounds a good thing, don’t you think. Surely BBC Scotland Business will be all over this?

Nope. it is only the largest in Europe when the SNP are in government so not really in the public interest to know, I guess, if you work in Pacific Quay.