Work Begins on Major Australian Battery Storage Project

---

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Construction has started at one of the world's largest battery energy storage system (BESS) projects in Melbourne, Australia.

Australia's Premier Jacinta Allan and Minister for the State Electricity Commission Lily D'Ambrosio recently turned the ceremonial sod on the first phase of the US$1 billion Melbourne Renewable Energy Hub (MREH) near Melton, which will store enough energy to power up to 200,000 homes during peak periods. The State Electricity Commission (SEC) has agreed to make a US$245 million equity investment in the project which is being led by renewable energy company Equis Development Pte Ltd, (Singapore) which is investing more than US$510 million in the project. It will use battery packs supplied by Tesla Incorporated (NASDAQ:TSLA) (Austin, Texas) while the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract has been awarded to a partnership including Samsung C&T Corporation (Seoul, Korea). MREH Phase 1 is a 600-megawatt (MW)/1,600-megawatt hour (MWh) project that has been divided into three 200-MW segments. The first two batteries will each comprise 400MWh of two-hour storage capacity, which will be owned 70% by Equis and 30% by the SEC. The remaining battery will comprise 800MWh of four-hour storage capacity, which will be owned 51% by Equis and 49% by the SEC. Tesla will supply the project with 444 of its integrated MegaPack modules.

"We're building critical energy projects under the SEC--investing in our grid so household bills go down for every Victorian with cheaper and more reliable renewable energy across the state," said Allan.

D'Ambrosio added: "The investment is a huge step forward in increasing Victoria's renewable storage capacity-- which is critical to meeting our nation leading targets of 95% renewable energy generation by 2035."

The hub is expected to be operational by 2025 and will be used to store excess rooftop solar and surplus energy from the grid. Australia's government has set a target of at least 2.6 gigawatts (GW) of energy storage capacity by 2030 and 6.3 GW by 2035. Industrial Info is tracking more than 300 BESS projects in Australia with a combined investment value of almost US$38 billion. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can click here for the reports.

Equis founder and managing director David Russell said: "The result will be one of the largest battery energy storage projects in the world. It will begin enhancing Victoria's grid and power price stability by the end of 2025. "The unique scale and structure of MREH Phase 1 has allowed for a rapid response to the SEC's capacity requirements and ability to directly firm its own renewable energy generation load whilst also ensuring 400MW of merchant capacity capable of rapidly responding to expected and unexpected events which impact power prices and the stable supply of power within the state."

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).