Official Reopening of a Power Station 6th March 2026

Official Reopening of a Power Station – based on research carried out by UL

6^th March 2026

Clockwise from top left: Shannonbridge B Hybrid Synchronous Condenser and BESS Power Station; Synchronous Condenser and Flywheel; Jake Bracken (Lumcloon Energy and alumnus of the Department of Physics, UL), Nigel Reams (CEO of Lumcloon Energy), and Robert Lynch (PI of the original 2015 grid pilot research project) at the official opening ceremony of Shannonbridge B; and Taoiseach Micheál Martin at the official ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Shannonbridge B project alongside Nigel Reams, CEO of Lumcloon Energy, and Jaekyu Lee, CEO of Hanwha Energy, on 6^th of March 2026.

Building on University of Limerick research conducted under the project “Establishment of System Services Research Facility for the Development and Investigation of a Hybrid Flywheel–Battery System Connected to the ESB Network”, sponsored by Enterprise Ireland, Ireland’s first hybrid synchronous condenser and battery energy storage system (BESS) for grid stabilisation was officially opened by An Taoiseach Micheál Martin at Shannonbridge, County Offaly, on 6^th of March 2026. The 63.2 MW grid-stabilisation station at Shannonbridge B, located near the former site of a peat-fired power station, was delivered by Lumcloon Energy in partnership with Hanwha Energy Corporation, Siemens Energy Ltd., and Suir Engineering Ltd.

The synchronous condenser technology incorporates a generator coupled to a flywheel, enabling the storage of significant amounts of energy in the rotating mass of the flywheel–condenser assembly. This stored energy, totalling 4000 MVA·s, can both inject and absorb power instantaneously to mitigate frequency deviations and enhance overall grid stability. Complementing this capability, the Battery Energy Storage System stores surplus renewable energy and releases it when needed. Together, these technologies enhance the dependability, flexibility, and resilience of renewable energy integration on the grid.

For example, during periods of high wind generation, the BESS can accumulate and subsequently supply up to 160 MWh of stored energy. Importantly, the two systems operate synergistically: the synchronous condenser provides continuous, instantaneous stabilisation over short timescales, while the battery system can respond in a fraction of a second to support the grid for extended periods (up to 2.5 hours at full load from a full charge).