A Staffordshire MP has today spoken out again the government’s plans to make it easier for developers to build Battery Energy Storage Sites on greenbelt land amid growing concerns about the safety of Lithium-ion battery storage.
Mike Wood, Member of Parliament for Kingswinford and South Staffordshire, called for the government to take action on Battery Energy Storage Systems on safety grounds in Parliament today, after a fire at a solar farm near Cirencester earlier this month affected containers containing lithium-ion batteries.
It is thought that at least three similar fires have occurred recently at similar Battery Energy Storage Sites across the country in recent months. Whilst in the United States, a fire at the world’s largest facility in California on 17 January 2025 forced a mass evacuation of residents in the local area.
Mike Wood MP said:
“I’m really concerned about the safety of proposed Battery Energy Storage Sites following a string of fires in recent months. It is so important that local people’s voices are heard when it comes to building on our greenbelt, and I know my constituents are understandably worried when these sites are constructed near their homes.
Unfortunately, this Labour Government's proposed reforms to the planning system will make it even easier for developers, some of which have never even set foot in South Staffordshire before, to build these sites in our back garden.
That’s why today I’m calling for the Government to review the fire safety of Battery Energy Storage Systems and planning regulations, to make sure that communities have proper oversight and a real say about the construction of these sites in their villages.’
Planning Applications for at least seven Battery Energy Storage Sites have been submitted for approval across Mr Wood’s constituency at sites in Lower Penn, Swindon and Wombourne.
The most recent application for a Battery Energy Storage Site in Kingswinford and South Staffordshire was approved on 17 April 2025 for land to the east and West of Wombourne Road, on the boundary of the villages of Swindon and Wombourne.
