Utility Scale Storage

Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) has announced plans to develop an $30 billion (USD 19,95 billion) green hydrogen production hub on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula, while a new research study shows the feasibility of gas-to-hydrogen pipeline conversion in Western Australia.

As part of its long-term plan to transition from coal-fired power generation to clean energy New South Wales has launched another renewable energy tender seeking at least 950 MW of wind and solar capacity and 550 MW of long-duration storage.

Queensland clean tech company Graphene Manufacturing Group has signed a deal with global mining giant Rio Tinto with the goal of accelerating the development and application of its graphene aluminium-ion battery technology in the mining and minerals industry.

International Graphite has made a key move in pursuit of its ‘mine to market’ strategy with the minerals startup securing a site for its proposed battery anode material manufacturing plant near the coal town of Collie in Western Australia.

The first large-scale battery storage project connected to Western Australia’s main grid has only just commenced operational testing and already plans are in place to build an even bigger battery at the site as the state government seeks to harness surging rooftop solar resources to meet its power needs as it prepares to dump coal power.

The shift from fossil fuels to renewables in Australia’s top end has taken a significant step forward with pre-commission testing having commenced on the 35 MW/35 MWh Darwin-Katherine Battery Energy Storage System that will support further uptake of solar among households and businesses in the Northern Territory.

The Northern Territory government has committed $12 million (USD 8.05 million) in its latest budget to accelerate the development of a “sustainable” industrial hub that will be largely powered by renewables as it looks to continue the overhaul of its electricity system.

While Australia’s home battery market seems to have attracted most of the interest from newcomers, there has been some significant new developments in the commercial and utility-scale space. Pv magazine Australia examined the new products and companies in the commercial and utility battery storage space on display at the Smart Energy Conference.

The West Australian government will plough almost $3 billion (USD 2.03 billion) into renewable energy generation, storage and transmission projects with modelling revealing more than 50 GW of new generation and storage capacity will be required in the state’s main electricity grid within the next 20 years.

Construction has been completed on what is, for now, New South Wales’ largest battery system. The 150 MW / 300 MWh Riverina and Darlington Point energy storage systems are made up of three co-located units and owned by private equity fund manager Federation Asset Management and Edify Energy.