High-tech renewable energy storage 'wheel' to be built in Offaly - energy storage companies

Ireland will be the first country in Europe to acquire a new system that stores energy generated from renewable sources and feeds it back to the smart grid when needed.
The new hybrid flywheel energy storage unit will be built in a location in Rhode state and will create 50 jobs during construction and commissioning.
The flywheel system consists of advanced carbon fiber tubes that float on magnets in a vacuum.
Electricity from renewable sources such as wind turbines or solar panels is used to rotate pipes or freewheels at very high speeds.
Because the flywheel is in a near-frictionless environment, it continues to rotate until the grid needs energy.
At this point, the kinetic energy stored in the flywheel is used to generate electricity and feed it back to the grid.
The height of each flywheel is about two metres, and they are buried underground to reduce visual impact.
The plant will be built by Schwungrad Energie Limited, Ireland, based in Rhode state, in collaboration with the Department of Physics and energy, University of Limerick. US-
Beacon Power, which develops the flywheel energy storage technology, will invest $1 m in the plant.
The European Commission's Horizon 2020 research fund has also provided more funding, while overseas-based RR projects and Irish businesses are also investors in the project.
More than 30 jobs will be created during construction, of which 10-
More staff will be needed to manage it in the future.
There is also an additional advantage of the flywheel technology, that is, mute, clean, not to use water or extra fuel in addition to being originally used for power generation.
Schungrad Energie says it chose the site of Rod brownfield due to the historical tradition of generating electricity in the area.