Construction begins at giant battery in ACT, as plans unveiled for even bigger battery at Hazelwood

Construction has officially begun on the biggest battery to be built in the ACT, as the developers behind the project unveil plans for an even bigger battery at Hazelwood in Victoria, the site of what was once the dirtiest coal fired power station in the world.

The official sod turning for the 250 megawatt (MW), 500 megawatt hour (MWh) Williamsdale battery in the ACT is due to be held on Friday, kicking off construction works that will see the battery in operation in 2026, with enough storage to power one third of Canberra for two hours in the evening peak.

The ACT government has already reached “net” 100 per cent renewables through a series of contracts with wind and solar farms that delivers the equivalent of its annual electricity demand from renewables, even if they are not completely time matched.

It is now adding more wind and solar projects to support its efforts at electrification of transport and buildings, and kicking out gas, and is also contracting its first two big batteries.

The first of these, Neoen Australia’s 100 MW, 200 MWh Capital battery is working through the commissioning process, and the Williamsdale battery is being built by Eku Energy, an offshoot of finance and investment giant Macquarie, which has struck a unique revenue sharing arrangement with the government.

The newly appointed ACT climate and energy minister Suzanne Orr says the new batteries will help store renewable energy “when it’s most abundant”, making its power supply more resilient and sustainable.

“This project demonstrates the ACT Government’s commitment to leading our nation on climate action and delivering tangible benefits to our community by reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and supporting the ACT’s commitment to a cleaner, greener city,” she said.

The deal with Eku will see the ACT government make quarterly payments for the battery – a guaranteed source of income that helped it reduce the cost of financing – and in return will earn a share of revenue from the operation of the battery, which will play in the FCAS and arbitrage markets.

Eku Energy’s chief technology office Elias Saba told Renew Economy that the battery contract market is rapidly evolving in Australia, and battery prices are also coming down. “It’s a good time to be executing projects,” he said.

Recently re-elected chief minister Andrew Barr described the battery as a significant milestone in the ACT’s journey towards a more sustainable future.

“The project highlights the ACT Government’s commitment to innovative, environmentally friendly energy solutions that will power our city for generations to come while shielding our community from energy price volatility,” he said.

Eku Energy’s first big battery project was the 150 MW, 150 MWh Hazelwood battery in Victoria, which it officially opened in 2023.

It has now unveiled plans to develop the 300 MW, 1,200 MWh Tramway Road battery that will plug into the nearby Hazelwood terminal substation, near the 350 MW, 1400 MWh Wooreen battery planned by EnergyAustralia. (It is not the same substation as the Hazelwood battery).

Eku Energy is also building the 200 MW, 400 MWh Rangebank battery in the south-east of Melbourne in partnership with Shell.

In the UK, Eku has opened the 40 MW, 40 MWh Maldon battery in the UK, and has three other battery projects under construction in the UK and Japan.

Eku Energy’s previous battery projects in Australia have used Fluence technology, but for Williamsdale it has turned to Tesla technology. Consolidated Power Projects is the main contractor. Saba said battery suppliers are assessed for each project, and Tesla turned out to the best option for the Williamsdale project.

The project has created a $500,000 community fund available to eligible local non-profit organisations, and Eku Energy has committed an additional $500,000 to the Australian National University’s Battery Storage and Grid Integration Program.

For more information, please go to Renew Economy’s Big Battery Storage Map of Australia.