LONDON: Porous rocks beneath waters off Britain's coast could provide long-term storage locations for renewable energy production, according to a study released by the University of Edinburgh.

The amount of energy produced by many renewable technologies varies depending on weather conditions. There is a need for new processes that can store energy cheaply and reliably for months at a time.

Now researchers from the University of Edinburgh and University of Strathclyde have proposed a new approach to trap compressed air in porous rock formations found in the North Sea using electricity from renewable technologies. The pressurized air could later be released to drive a turbine to generate large amounts of electricity.

Using the technique on a large scale could store enough compressed air to meet Britain's electricity needs during winter, when demand is highest, the study found.

The team, using mathematical models, assessed that these rocks beneath Britain's waters could store about one and a half times the country's typical electricity demand for January and February.

This method could make it possible to store renewable energy produced in the summer for those chilly winter nights, said Dr. Julien Mouli-Castillo, from the University of Edinburgh.

It can provide a viable, though expensive, option to ensure the UK's renewable electricity supply is resilient between seasons, Mouli-Castillo added.

The study has been published in the journal Nature Energy. Xinhua