Cowley electricity sub-station (49.9 MW battery storage)
Cowley electricity sub-station is a 49.9 MW battery storage project in Oxford, England. Its status in the Renewable Energy Planning Database (July 2026 extract) is: operational since 22 June 2021; the record was last updated on 9 March 2026.
49.9 MWbattery storage
operationalstatus in REPD
9 March 2026record last updated
Oxfordcouncil area
Planning timeline
| Date | Stage |
|---|---|
| 25 February 2019 | Application submitted |
| 4 June 2019 | Planning permission granted |
| 15 November 2019 | Construction started |
| 22 June 2021 | Operational |
Project details
- Technology
- battery storage (co-located with fossil fuel plant)
- Capacity
- 49.9 MW
- Status (REPD)
- operational
- Record last updated
- 9 March 2026
- Operator or applicant
- Pivot Power
- Planning authority
- South Oxfordshire
- Planning application reference
- P19/S0623/FUL
- Address (REPD)
- Cowley Main Sub Station, Lower Blackberry Lane, Garsington, Oxford
- Council area (by location)
- Oxford
- Time to decision
- 14 weeks
- REPD reference
- 7571
Who decides
| Applications | South Oxfordshire | UK |
|---|---|---|
| Decided applications (solar, wind, battery) | 33 | 10,236 |
| Refused | 9 (27%) | 19% |
| Solar refused | 4 of 23 | 12% |
| Battery storage refused | 5 of 10 | 16% |
| Median time from submission to decision | 21.4 weeks | 17.0 weeks |
| Appeals lodged / allowed | 1 / 4 | — |
UK: all UK planning authorities. Counted under these REPD planning authority names: Oxfordshire, South Oxfordshire.
Other large projects within 10 km
| Project | Type | MW | Status | km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lower road, Garsington | battery storage | 100 | refused | 1.2 |
| Cowley Substation, Blackberry Lane Battery Storage Energy System | battery storage | 200 | approved, not built | 1.7 |
| Nuneham Courtenay Solar Farm & Battery Storage Facility | solar farm | 49.9 | approved, not built | 2.0 |
| Nuneham Courtenay Solar Farm | solar farm | 49.9 | application submitted | 3.1 |
| Burcot Solar Farm | solar farm | 49.9 | approved, not built | 5.7 |
| Burcot Farm Battery Storage | battery storage | 49.9 | application withdrawn | 6.6 |
| Culham Science Centre, Clifton Hampden | battery storage | 500 | approved, not built | 6.8 |
| Wally Corner Landfill Site | solar farm | 7 | operational | 6.9 |
| Culham Science Centre | battery storage | 250 | abandoned | 7.3 |
Status and dates as recorded in the Renewable Energy Planning Database (July 2026 extract); the database is compiled from public sources and can lag behind council decisions. Location: REPD grid reference (51.7176, -1.186).