The Albanese Government is making energy cleaner, cheaper and more secure across the National Electricity Market (NEM), with a $176 million dollar investment in advanced battery technology to deliver 2GW of dispatchable power.
Eight grid-scale batteries will be funded through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency’s (ARENA) Large Scale Battery Storage Funding Round.
The batteries range from 200-300 megawatts each and include grid-forming inverter technology, which is critical to system security and reliability.
The total value of all projects is around $2.7 billion.
Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen said the Albanese Government is getting on with the job and delivering the electricity system strength needed to unlock renewables.
These include the first grid-forming batteries in Victoria and Queensland, as well as projects in South Australia and New South Wales.
“These batteries will help stabilise the grid and deliver the cleanest, cheapest form of energy for Australian businesses and households,” Minister Bowen said.
“The successful projects will deliver the 8 largest grid-forming batteries in Australia.
“Over the past decade, we saw policy chaos cause a reduction of 3GW of dispatchable power in the grid enough to power over two million homes.
“This investment looks to deliver around 2GW of dispatchable power, to ensure Australian households and businesses can count on the increasingly renewable energy they use being available when they need it.”
