Australia’s biggest syncon nears completion as 300 tonne spinning machine hauled into place

A mammoth synchronous condenser – expected to be the largest of its type in Australia – is being installed in the heart of a renewables zone in western Victoria as part of plans to boost grid security and help accommodate more wind and solar farms in the region.

Synchronous condensers, occasionally known as syn-cons, are basically large spinning machines that do not burn fuel and provide essential system services such as as “system strength” to support the power grid in the case of a disturbance.

They are being rolled out in their dozens across the Australian grid, although their numbers are being trimmed by the growing realisation that battery grid forming inverters can also provide much, or even all, the same services.

Battery storage developers insist they can, although the market operator and the transmission companies who are responsible for system strength say they want more evidence of inverter capabilities.

At the Ararat terminal station in Victoria, the syncon will be sized at 250MVA – the biggest in the grid so far, although NSW has recently put in an order of at least seven of the same size.

They are massive machines. Two large 150-tonne halves of a syncon arrived at the Ararat Terminal Station last month and, according to Australian Energy Operations (AEO), installation is nearing completion, with the syncon expected to be energised before the end of the year.

AEO is delivering the Ararat syncon for the Victorian government and the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) in tandem with local renewable energy construction firm Beon Energy Solutions.

It is one of 12 projects being delivered under the state government’s $480 million investment in strengthening and modernising Victoria’s electricity grid so as to facilitate the integration of more renewable energy sources.

The synchronous condenser being installed at Ararat has been sourced from Austrian technology group Andritz and, according to Hassan Taha, a senior project manager with Beon, is so large it has to be shipped in three massive boxes.

Currently, the Ararat Terminal Station already connects the 75 wind turbines of the 242 MW Ararat wind farm to the national electricity grid. The Ararat syncon is expected to facilitate the addition of up to 600 MW of additional renewable energy generation sources in Western Victoria.

“This project really is a show-piece for the Victorian energy transition,” says Australian Energy Operations chief executive officer Glen Thomson.

“For example, if a large generator trips, or a transmission line falls over or fails, this machine can respond and help that situation. We’re well placed to show the world how it’s done.”

“The Ararat syncon is a critical piece of infrastructure that will enable the development of more renewable energy in the state’s west, delivering economic benefits for locals and helping keep the lights on as coal-fired power retires,” said Lily D’Ambrosio, Victorian minister for energy and resources.

“As coal retires and more renewables come in, we’re going to need a lot more syncronous condensors,” adds Thompson.