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Renewable planning Battery storageNew Forest

Battery storage planning in New Forest

New Forest has decided 5 battery storage schemes and approved 80% of them, taking a median of 4.3 months to decide. Consented capacity: 260 MW. 1 application still awaiting a decision.

80%
Approved
4 granted · 1 refused
4.3 mo
Median decision
UK 6 mo
260 MW
Consented
across approved schemes
0
Appeals
no appeals recorded

⚠️ Small caseload (5 decided). Percentages here move a lot with one more decision — read them as indicative, not as a reliable rate.

How New Forest compares

Against the 137 UK authorities with 5+ battery storage decisions, New Forest sits in the 10th percentile for approval rate (12 points below the England average) and the 71st percentile for speed.

Decisions by year

35Refused — 1 (2024)124Approved — 2 (2025)225Approved — 1 (2026)126
Approved Refused

Battery storage decisions by the year the decision was issued (Renewable Energy Planning Database). Withdrawn and still-undecided applications are excluded, so a short bar can mean a quiet year rather than a strict council.

Every recorded scheme (6)

SchemeMWStatusDecided
Bulls Copse Road, Marchwood Bypass - Battery Energy Storage System
Sky UK Development Limited · 25/10640 · 7.4 mo to decide
49.9Awaiting Construction2026-02-20
East Road, Marchwood - Battery Energy Storage
BW ESS Development UK Limited · 25/10639 · 4.1 mo to decide
200Awaiting Construction2025-11-13
Slowhill Copse, Bury Road - Battery Storage Facility
Trant Engineering Limited · 24/11043 · 4.5 mo to decide
Awaiting Construction2025-04-22
Christchurch Road, Downton - Battery Storage
GridSource Limited · 24/11099
0.2Application Submitted2025-01-15
Christchurch Road, Downton - Battery Storage
GridSource Limited · 24/10748 · 1.8 mo to decide
0.2Application Refused2024-10-17
Land Adj Harmer Warren Quarry
New Forest Energy (formerly Somerley Estate) · 17/11630
10Under Construction2017-11-30

Does New Forest approve battery storage schemes?

Yes — of the 5 battery storage schemes New Forest has decided, 80% were approved (4 granted, 1 refused). The UK-wide rate for battery storage is 92%. Note this is a small caseload, so treat the percentage as indicative rather than statistically robust.

How long does a battery storage scheme application take in New Forest?

The median time from application to decision is 4.3 months, against a UK median of 6 months for battery storage. That is measured between the submission and decision dates recorded in REPD, so it reflects the whole determination period including any extensions.

How much battery storage capacity has New Forest consented?

260 MW has been consented across 4 approved schemes. A further 1 application awaits a decision.

Other technologies in New Forest

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Source: Renewable Energy Planning Database (REPD), Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, Open Government Licence v3.0 — 2026 Q1 extract. Approval rate is over decided applications only (approved ÷ approved+refused); withdrawn and undecided schemes are excluded. A permission later expired still counts as approved because consent was granted. REPD covers schemes of roughly 150 kW and above, is published quarterly, and does not record refusal reasons — so nothing here explains why a scheme was refused. Screening context for site selection, not planning advice.

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