General view outside Emirates Stadium prior to the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Liverpool FC on Nov. 3, 2018. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
Arsenal FC has announced the installation of a 3.7MWh battery storage system that will be capable of storing enough power to run Emirates Stadium for an entire 90-minute soccer match. The energy system is the largest at any sporting ground in the UK.
The energy needed for an entire match is the equivalent of that required to power 2,700 homes for two hours. Additional storage is expected to be added in summer 2019, at which point the system device will have reach its 3.7MWh capacity. UK-based Pivot Power developed the battery in partnership with Arsenal’s energy supplier Octopus Energy. The project was funded with help from investment management firm Downing LLP.
“This is a big step forwards for us in being efficient with energy usage, and building on our work in reducing our carbon footprint as an organisation,” said Arsenal managing director Vinai Venkatesham in a team press release. “We have been powered by green energy since 2017 thanks to Octopus Energy, and the battery storage system will support our efforts further.”
Around 80 percent of matchday waste will be recycled as part of the new BSS installation. Since teaming up with Octopus Energy, Arsenal has installed LED floodlights at its home stadium, reducing the club’s energy consumption by 30 percent. Pivot Power will operate that system for the next 15 years and hopes that the battery can generate income by providing services to National Grid, a UK-based energy and gas utility company that runs the country’s power grid.
“Arsenal is showing how football clubs and other big power users can save money and support government plans to meet climate change targets,” said Pivot Power CEO Matt Allen in the press release. “Batteries are central to creating a cost-effective, low-carbon economy and we are keen to help government, local authorities and businesses seize the opportunities they offer.”
