Industrial hub to host big battery in the heart of NSW coal country

A new 28MW, two hour battery system will be added to a green-focused industrial hub in the heart of the New South Wales coal-rich Hunter Region.

The battery system will provide around two hours of back-up supply, as well as participating in frequency control and ancillary services markets.

The project is being undertaken as a collaboration between Precinct Capital and Edify Energy and will be constructed within the Steel River Estate industrial hub, in Newcastle.

A development application for the project has been lodged with the Newcastle City Council and could deliver the first big battery system in the Hunter region.

“Deploying this battery in the heart of Newcastle’s industrial precinct will help balance the power system for the City, keeping the lights on for industry and households throughout the region,” Precinct Capital chairman Bruce Baudinet said.

“The battery itself is about 2,500 square metres, or roughly 10 tennis courts in size, and includes climate-controlled energy storage enclosures and grid connection infrastructure.

“We consulted with industry experts and quickly identified Edify as a market leader in this segment, and that the Steel River site was very suitable and strategically located. Edify is among a select few local companies that have successfully brought a large-scale battery to market, so we formed a partnership focused on delivering a fantastic and innovative project for the Hunter Region,” Baudinet said.

Edify Energy will oversee the delivery of the battery system and has previously managed the construction of the 25MW/50MWh Gannawarra Energy Storage System in Victoria, as well as a number of large-scale solar farms across Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales – including the 275MW Darlington Point Solar Farm.

“The Steel River Battery is an exciting project for Edify and builds on our existing position as a leader in energy storage solutions in Australia,” Edify chief executive, John Cole said.

“The project will act like a shock absorber within the electrical network, absorbing electricity from the grid when generation exceeds demand and export electricity to the grid at times of lower generation including during intermittent solar and wind resource.”

Newcastle Lord Mayor, Nuatali Nelmes, welcomed the announcement of the big battery development – made shortly before Christmas – saying that the city was hoping to attract more green industries into the Hunter region.
The Steel River Eco Estate is already host to the CSIRO’s Energy Research Centre.

“Newcastle is a smart, sustainable and liveable global city supporting investment in next generation technologies to address the challenges of climate change and is a great place for future-focused industries to be established,” Nelmes said.

“Newcastle is recognised as one of Australia’s leading Cities in sustainability, and our Climate Action Plan sets ambitious goals and priorities for Newcastle over the next five years, including the transition to 100 per cent renewable electricity.”

“This a world class large-scale battery storage investment in the Newcastle area, and a first-of-its-kind project for the region, creating a blueprint for additional investments and local innovation,” Nelmes added.