ACEN kicks off large-scale battery storage project in Australia

ACEN CORP., through its subsidiary, has started building a large-scale battery energy storage system (BESS) alongside its 720-megawatt (MW) solar project in New South Wales (NSW), Australia.

ACEN Australia has engaged international energy storage specialist Energy Vault to lead the construction of the facility, which will be capable of storing 200 megawatts of energy for two hours, the company said in a media release on Wednesday.

The facility is the first large-scale BESS in the region and is expected to provide on-demand energy to customers in both NSW and Queensland. Its construction is supported by the NSW Government’s Emerging Energy Program.

The 400-megawatt-hour project will involve “the integration of advanced grid-forming inverters to provide system strength, stability, and network security services.” 

“This is the first large-scale battery storage project to be built in New England, so this is a great milestone for the region and the National Electricity Market,” said Tim Greenaway, ACEN Australia’s head of construction and engineering.

Mr. Greenaway stated that geotechnical and design work is nearly complete, and installation of the electrical infrastructure to connect the battery is well underway.

“We expect the civil and base electrical work for the BESS to begin in the next month or two, in preparation for the delivery of the battery modules in the second half of the year,” he said.

Energy Vault Vice-President of Sales Asia Lucas Sadler said the New England Battery Project is the company’s first project to enter the construction phase in Australia.

“There’s a lot of global attention on Australia’s battery storage market, and we’re very happy to be making a positive contribution to such an important project,” Mr. Sadler said. 

The BESS will be co-located at the Stage 1 Solar Power Project site, which has 400 MW of capacity and was completed in 2023. Construction of the second 320-MW phase is scheduled to begin in 2026.

A BESS is a type of energy storage system that uses batteries to store electricity from the grid and release it when needed to augment supply or enhance power quality.

ACEN, the listed energy platform of the Ayala Group, holds approximately 6.8 gigawatts of attributable renewable energy capacity across operational, under-construction, and committed projects. It operates in the Philippines, Australia, Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Laos, and the US. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera