Finland researchers install world’s first ‘sand battery that stores clean energy’

Finnish researchers have installed the world’s first fully working “sand battery” which can store green power for months at a time.

The developers say this could solve the problem of year-round supply, a major issue for green energy.

Using low-grade sand, the device is charged up with heat made from cheap electricity from solar or wind.

The sand stores the heat at around 500C, which can then warm homes in winter when energy is more expensive.

Finland gets most of its gas from Russia, so the war in Ukraine has drawn the issue of green power into sharp focus.

Concerns over sources of heat and light, especially with the long, cold Finnish winter on the horizon are preoccupying politicians and citizens alike.

But in a corner of a small power plant in western Finland stands a new piece of technology that has the potential to ease some of these worries.

The key element in this device is around 100 tons of builder’s sand, piled high inside a dull grey silo.

These rough and ready grains may well represent a simple, cost-effective way of storing power for when it’s needed most.

Sand is a very effective medium for storing heat and loses little over time.