Plans to store energy in batteries on a green belt near Eaglesham have been scrapped over fears of the potential fire risk.

More than 250 objections to the plan were sent to East Renfrewshire Council, but planners had recommended it could go ahead.

However, councilors voted to reject the project, raising concerns about the fire risk of lithium-ion batteries.

They also questioned the suitability of the site and said the energy “does not necessarily come from renewable sources.”

GPC 1137 Ltd, based in Cheshire, wanted to build and manage a 40 MW battery energy storage facility on green belt, agricultural land on the east side of Glasgow Road, Eaglesham.

Surplus energy from the national grid would have been stored in batteries to be returned when needed. It was described as a “temporary” facility, with the site returned to its previous state after 40 years.

The company said the development “will fulfill a vital ‘balancing role’, helping to ensure the network remains stable in times of stress.”

He added: “It will also help support grid decarbonisation by allowing the grid to accept a greater proportion of electricity generated from more intermittent renewable energy sources such as wind and solar.”

However, the council received 252 objections, with concerns about visual impact, residential amenity, loss of parkland and health and safety, including fire risk.

In a report to councillors, planners said the plan could be approved. One told the committee the council had “a right to expect its operation to be safe”. The applicants submitted a safety plan outlining how the risk of fire would be minimized.

Cllr Paul Edlin, Conservative, said: “Lithium-ion batteries have an inherent risk of fire, there is no denying it.

“This is situated near the village of Eaglesham. A kid could be walking down that road or on his bike and the thing explodes. “There is a risk.”

He also said the “temporary” 40-year deadline was “beyond the lifetimes of most people here (at the planning meeting), myself included.”

Cllr Andrew Morrison, Conservative, said his concern was that “on the face of it… there is really no power generation involved”.

He added: “The fact that it is powered from the national grid and the Giffnock substation means that the energy fed to the batteries does not necessarily come from renewable sources. “It will come from whatever combination of energy is on the grid.”

Cllr Morrison said the committee should consider the “fire risk”. A planning official said: “We have a right to expect it to be delivered safely.

“So in itself it wouldn’t be a health risk, but we can’t control if something happens to it.”

He confirmed that no power would be generated, but added: “The applicant has advised that as we move towards using more and more renewable sources, there needs to be a way to have that power when the wind is not blowing or that source is not available. “

Official add-on battery storage systems are becoming “increasingly common” and would “take them off the grid and back out when needed.”

Planning committee chairman Cllr Jim McLean, Conservative, said: “We can’t say whether it is renewable energy or not because it comes from a substation that all the energy is fed into.”

He added that it was in a green belt and that the applicant “had not mentioned alternative sites” despite other substations being closer than Giffnock.

However, Cllr Annette Ireland, an independent, said: “I consider myself an advocate for these. “I realize how essential they are to renewable energy as we move away from fossil fuels.”

He suggested that the plans should be approved, but lost by four votes to two.

Labor chancellor Mary Montague also supported the plan. She said: “This is on the periphery of our area, it’s out of the way.

“This is battery storage, so my understanding is that it stores energy for future use. That way, it is not only environmentally friendly but also useful.”

She had requested a site visit, but Cllr McLean’s casting vote defeated that proposal after a 3-3 split.

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