Acen Set To Build Largest Battery Storage Project In Australia

Acen, the Phillipines based renewable energy major that is part of the Ayala group, is set to make Australia’s largest storage battery project linked to a solar farm. The project, to come up in the New England region of New South Wales, has secured approvals to take its size to 1.4 GW (1,400MW) and 2.8 GWh, or two hours of storage.

The battery will accompany Acen Australia’s 720 MW New England solar farm.

The new battery, if built, will overtake the 850MW/1680MWh Waratah Super battery, besides the recently announced 500MW/2000MWh Collie battery in Western Australia.

The new project will play a key role for New South Wales, which has been gradually phasing out its coal plants. Australia has been fertile ground for large battery storage projects integrated with the grid, ever since the Hornsdale plant built using Tesla batteries proved its utility as a viable and relevant investment. Australia also happens to have the highest penetration of rooftop solar in the residential category, with over 30% of households having a rooftop solar installation.

For Acen, the Australian experience is set to support its ambitious renewable energy plans elsewhere in South East Asia, where it has set itself a target to be the largest renewables player. It has a target of 20 GW of renewable assets by 2030, with a significant share in South East Asia, where it hopes to lead the transition to renewables. The firm also has some projects in India, with over 200 MW of running projects in Gujarat and Rajasthan, and a 420 MW project under construction in Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh.

While the firm has not yet announced the technology partner for the battery storage project in Australia, the firm is likely to go with a lithium battery technology at this stage.