CWP to test “merchant” big battery as part of Sapphire wind and solar hub

CWP Renewables says the 30MW big battery that will be partly funded by the NSW government will test the merchant opportunities for battery storage in Australia’s energy market, as it looks to add a big solar farm to its existing 270MW Sapphire wind facility.

CWP and its Sapphire battery were one of four big new storage projects announced for funding by the NSW state government earlier this month, along with a gas/battery hybrid from Goldwind, a battery “virtual power plant” and another big battery in New England proposed by UPC/AC Energy..

Jason Willoughby, CWP’s CEO, told RenewEconomy that the 30MW battery would have one hour storage, so 30MWh, and would be used to test the market in frequency control, grid support and arbitrage. Depending on the results, the battery can be upscaled at a later date, particularly when the size of its proposed solar addition – possibly more than 200MW – is finalised.

CWP intends to install the big battery “behind the meter” and feed in to the same connection point as the Sapphire wind farm. That will involve a renegotiation of the wind projects GPS (generator performance standards) with Transgrid and the Australian Energy Market Operator.

Some in the market may view this as slightly heroic, given the changes in connection and commissioning requirements elsewhere in the grid, but Willoughby says discussions with the two organisation had been progressing well.

“Sapphire was always going to be a renewable energy hub, with solar and battery,” Willoughby told RenewEconomy. “The challenge for renewables is to provide a firm product. That’s what customers are looking for, a firm PPA (power purchase agreement) to match their load.

See also: NSW to fund four new big battery projects as it readies to flick switch from coal