The Australian arm of French renewable energy and storage developer Neoen has provided notices to proceed to battery supplier Tesla and balance of plant contractor UGL, launching construction of the 305 MW / 1,220 MWh Stage 3 Western Downs Battery in southeast Queensland.
The new four-hour battery will be Neoen’s fourth asset within its Western Downs Green Power Hub, located near the town of Chinchilla, about 250 kilometres west of Brisbane. The latest stage will complement a 400 MW solar farm, that was commissioned in 2023, and the Stage 1 and 2 battery systems, each of 270 MW / 540 MWh capacity.
Neoen said the first two battery systems are now delivering critical reliability, frequency and firming services to Australia’s National Electricity Market (NEM) and the combined 540 MW / 1,080 MWh capacity makes it the largest battery storage asset with grid-forming capabilities registered in Queensland’s electricity network.
The developer said once Stage 3 becomes operational, the Western Downs battery will contribute a combined 845 MW / 2,300 MWh of storage capacity in support of the state’s energy transition.
The new four-hour battery will comprise 312 Tesla Megapack 2XL units and will be equipped with grid-forming capabilities. It will connect into Powerlink’s Western Downs substation, leveraging existing infrastructure at Western Downs.
The new battery is expected to start operating in late 2027, helping to support two new virtual battery contracts that Neoen has signed with French-owned energy group Engie.
The offtake deals will give Engie virtual access to 50 MW / 200 MWh capacity of the Stage 3 battery while a second contract for 25 MW / 50 MWh will be backed by the Stage 2 system.
Neoen said the virtual battery deals allow Engie to hedge its own or its customers’ loads by virtually charging and discharging Western Downs Battery without having to develop, build, or operate one themselves.
The launch of the new four-hour battery at Western Downs brings Neoen’s total battery storage capacity in Australia to 2 GW / 6.4 GWh in operation or under construction, a milestone that group chief executive Xavier Barbaro said highlights the company’s innovation and leadership in big batteries.
“This expansion is underpinned by the strength and value of our virtual battery solution,” he said, adding that the Western Downs project “provides us with an inspiring template for growth in other regions, as we continue to accelerate the pace of the energy transition in Australia, and around the world.”
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