The Waratah Super Battery Energy is a 850 megawatt (MW) / 1,680 megawatt-hour (MWh) battery to be located on the site of the former Munmorah Power Station on the Central Coast, NSW. The project forms part of the Hunter Transmission Project, which is the northern component of the Sydney Ring project. The aim of the project is to increase power transfer capacity on transmission lines that connect generation in the northern and southern regions of NSW to the Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong region.
The battery will operate as part of a broader System Integrity Protection Scheme (SIPS) which is designed to monitor transmission lines and enable the battery to act as a 'shock absorber' in the event of any sudden fault on the transmission system.
The scope of the works includes:
- an 800 MW / 1,680 MWh SIPS battery service (to be developed by Akaysha Energy)
- SIPS control and communications systems (to be developed and operated by Transgrid)
- Augmentations to existing transmission network lines and substation equipment, including Yass – Marulan 330 kV, Collector WF – Marulan 330 kV, and Bannaby – Sydney West 330 kV lines (to be undertaken by Transgrid), and
- Paired generation services (to be undertaken by a portfolio of generators).
Development of the project will be supported by an initial invesment by the NSW Government under its Transmission Acceleration Facility, and form part of the government's Electricity Infrastructure Roadmap.
The battery will be located in the Hunter-Center Coast Renewable Energy Zone.
Key Dates
| Feb 2022 | Project Announcement |
| Apr 2022 | EOIs Open |
| May 2022 | EOIs Close |
| May 2023 | Construction Commencement |
| Dec 2025 | Expected Construction Completion |
Financing
| Equity Finance: | BlackRock |
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In June 2023 BlackRock Private Markets confirmed that it has raised more than $500 million from Australian and global institutional and sovereign co-investors, including NGS Super. This includes $100 million from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation. |
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Procurement
| Procuring Agency: | Energy Corporation of NSW (EnergyCo) |
| Successful Tenderer: | Akaysha Energy (subsidiary of BlackRock) - project development Transgrid - network operator |
| Procurement note: | Akaysha Energy has been selected to construct and operate a battery that is capable of providing a guaranteed continuous active power capacity of at least 700 MW, and a guaranteed useable energy storage capacity of at least 1400 MWh. Transgrid, as the Network Operator for the WSB project, is required under the Ministerial direction to enter into a contractual arrangement to procure the SIPS battery service from Akaysha Energy. |
| Related contracts: |
PROJECT HISTORY
| Feb 2022 | The NSW Government announced the project following an announcement by Origin Energy that it would bring forward closure of its 2,880 MW, coal-fired Eraring Power Station at Lake Macquarie in NSW. |
| Apr 2022 | EnergyCo opened Expression of Interest (EOIs) for the project, closing on 2 May. |
| Sep 2022 | The NSW Minister for Planning declared the project as Critical State Significant Infrastructure under the Environment Planning & Assessment Act 1979 (NSW). |
| Sep 2022 | The Energy Corporation of NSW (EnergyCo) released the scoping report for the proposed project. |
| Oct 2022 | Transgrid was awarded a Network Operator contract for the Waratah Super Battery, while Akaysha Energy was also awarded the contract to construct the project. |
| Oct 2022 | The Secretary's Environmental Assessment Requirements (SEARs) were released for the project. |
| Nov 2022 | The NSW Department of Planning and Environment placed EnergyCo's Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Waratah Super Battery Energy Storage System on public exhibition, closing 8 December. |
| Feb 2023 | The NSW Department of Planning and Environment granted final planning approvals for the project. |
| May 2023 | Construction commenced on the project, due for completion in 2025. |
| Jun 2023 | WSP was awarded the Owner's Engineer advisory contract for the project. |
| Jun 2023 | BlackRock confirmed it had raised over $500 million in investment for the project, including from NGS Super and $100 million from the CEFC. |
2023/06/15 WSP Appointed Owners Engineer
2022/02/17 NSW response to closure of Eraring Power Station
2023/05/31 Construction commencement
2023/06/29 Capital raise including CEFC
2022/10/18 Akaysha Energy appointment
