Utility Scale Storage

Storage specialist Fluence has launched Ultrastack, a battery energy storage system (BESS) for storage-as-transmission assets. It is designed to help network owners and operators to manage renewables curtailment, increase the use of power lines, and limit congestion.

Annual investment in renewable energy construction in Australia is forecast to jump almost 50% this year and continue to climb to a peak in 2026 with historically high levels of activity to follow as the country continues its transition away from fossil fuel-fired power generation.

Western Australian battery technology company Altech Batteries has included “game-changing” sodium chloride technology in the design of its new battery 1 MWh GridPack which is expects will be up to 40% cheaper to produce than the dominant lithium-ion alternatives.

European renewables giant OX2 has announced its entry into the Australian market with the acquisition of Esco Pacific, one of the country’s biggest utility-scale solar developers in a deal valued at $126 million (USD 84.2 million).

The Australian renewables arm of international energy giant Shell has announced another addition to its rapidly expanding utility-scale battery portfolio, confirming it will team with the Green Investment Group to develop a 200 MW/400 MWh battery energy storage system in Victoria.

Australian battery manufacturer Redflow has inked a deal that will see it supply its “non-lithium” energy storage technology to clean energy outfit Ameresco which is looking to develop integrated solar and zinc-bromine flow battery solutions for its customer base throughout North America and Europe.

Australia’s national science agency, the CSIRO, estimates the country could require a 10 to 14-fold increase in its electricity storage capacity between 2025-2050. It has released its energy storage report, forecasting demand in different sectors and summarising storage technologies.

Australian battery technology innovator Sparc Technologies is reporting “exceptional” results in its campaign to develop sustainably sourced hard carbon material for the production of anodes for the nascent sodium-ion battery market.

The Kogan Renewable Hydrogen Demonstration Plant, which is expected to produce approximately 75 tonnes of green hydrogen annually from behind-the-meter solar energy, is nearing reality after CS Energy formalised its joint venture arrangements with ASX-listed gas company Senex Energy.

As Synergy prepares to switch on its first big battery, the state-owned utility has revealed it plans to build a new 200 MW/800 MWh battery energy storage system at Kwinana to support the state’s main grid and enable the uptake of more renewables in Western Australia.