Neoen jacks up size of biggest solar battery project in Australia

French renewable energy developer Neoen has announced a major increase in the size of its Western Downs Battery project in Queensland, which is already the biggest battery co-located with a solar project in Australia.

The battery – part of what Neoen calls its Western Downs Green Power Hub, located on Barunggam country near the town of Chinchilla – was initially planned at 200MW and 400MWh, but has now been expanded to 270MW and 540MWh.

It is being built with Tesla Megapack 2XL battery technology and will sit next to the newly commissioned 400MW Western Down solar farm. UGL will build the project.

Neoen has been the pioneer and dominant player in the Australia battery storage market, building the original Tesla big battery at Hornsdale, as well as the Victoria Big Battery, which at 300MW and 450MWh remains the biggest completed battery project in the country.

Neoen also has smaller battery installations at Bulgana (20MW/32MWh), and is building the 100MW/200MWh Canberra big battery, and the 200MW/400MWh Blyth big battery in South Australia, which will provide power as part of a baseload renewables contract with mining giant BHP.

The company has also recently announced its first four hour battery project – 219 MW and 877 MWh at Collie in Western Australia, to be built with a unique contract to squash, or flatten, the so-called “solar duck” in that state.

See RenewEconomy’s Big Battery Storage Map of Australia

“With its greater capacity, the battery intends to play an even more central role in Queensland’s rapidly accelerating energy transition which is resulting in a growing need for storage and related network services,” the company said in a statement.

it says the battery will provide a number of services when it starts operating in the summer of 2024/45, including renewables firming, requency services and transmission network support.

It will also feature grid-forming inverter technology to provide essential system stability services under a funding agreement with the Australian Renewable Energy Agency.

The announcement by Neoen confirms that battery storage is the healthiest part of the green energy industry in Australia, given that approvals for new wind and solar projects have fallen dramatically – despite the pressing need for more capacity to meet the country’s 82 per cent renewables target.

Paul Simshauser, the CEO of transmission company Powerlink, said batteries will play a critical role in the changing generation. Queensland has an 80 per cent renewable energy target for 2035, although it trails most states in renewable energy share with just 24 per cent over the last 12 months.

Western Downs will be the biggest battery in Queensland, which currently features just one operating battery – the 100MW/150MWh Wandoan facility, and another that has just started the commissioning process, the 50MW/100MWh Bouldercombe battery.

“It illustrates once more our commitment to accelerating investment in battery storage, with durations that are capable of delivering a wider range of services and solutions,” Neoen CEO Xavier Barbaro said in a statement.

“Neoen is unlocking the full potential of renewables. We are proud to be making an increasingly valuable contribution to a clean energy future for Australia and the rest of the world.”

See also RenewEconomy’s Big Battery Storage Map of Australia