ACEN, Marubeni seal deal for battery storage project
ACEN Australia and Marubeni Asian Power Singapore will jointly develop a 200-megawatt (MW) or 400-MW hour (MWH) battery energy storage system (BESS) in New South Wales, Australia costing AU$250 million.
Under the Cooperation Agreement signed during the Philippine Business Forum held in Melbourne, Australia, their target is to complete the BESS by 2025.
ACEN Australia Managing Director David Pollington said the agreement shows the collaborative efforts of both firms to promote the sustainable supply of renewable energy in Australia.
“ACEN has a bold strategy to help Australia transition to a clean energy future, and we are excited by this partnership with Marubeni. Battery storage will play a critical role in bringing renewable energy projects to life and clean electricity for Australian homes and businesses.”
Moroo Shino, Marubeni Asian Power Singapore president, said the project will be materialized through the strength and cooperation of both companies.
The agreement is another milestone for ACEN Australia’s inaugural project, New England Solar, which stands as a major contributor to the National Electricity Market (NEM). Once finished, it will be one of Australia’s largest co-located solar and battery energy storage facilities.
New England Solar is a 720 MW solar and battery project currently being built in stages near Uralla in the New South Wales (NSW) New England region. Stage 1 of the solar facility (400 MW) commenced generating clean, renewable electricity into NSW and Queensland in 2023.
Stage 2 will start construction this year. This agreement marks the initial stage of the battery of 200 MW, with potential for significant future expansion. The project is being delivered with the support of host landholders, First Nations, and the Uralla community.
Transgrid Group’s contestable business Lumea will connect the grid-forming BESS to the grid, supporting a secure energy supply as the network transitions from aging coal fire power stations to new renewable generation and energy storage.
“The Transgrid Group, through our contestable division Lumea, is proud to work with ACEN Australia on this significant project. The team is excited to get on with the job of connecting the battery energy storage system to the electricity network—it’s a very big step forward in the energy transition and for Australia’s electricity consumers,” said Brett Redman, Transgrid CEO.
ACEN Australia’s renewable platform represents more than 1 gigawatt (GW) capacity of large-scale renewable energy generation under construction and in operation and more than 8 GW capacity in the development pipeline, with a portfolio including solar, wind, battery, and pumped hydro projects across Australia.
Pact with Zen Energy
ACEN Australia also announced that it signed a cooperation agreement with Australian-owned Zen Energy Retail (Zen Energy) to advance the power purchase agreement documentation for an offtake of up to 220MW of ACEN’S New England Solar project.
The partnership ensures a steady revenue stream for the solar project through the creation and sale of large-scale generation certificates, a mechanism used to reduce the cost of renewable energy and encourage the use of clean energy sources. The 11-year agreement will support Zen Energy in balancing the variable nature of solar power and provide a fixed price assurance.
“The agreement with Zen Energy reduces the need for electricity that could otherwise be sourced at a higher emissions intensity,” said Pollington.
Zen Energy is Australia’s first 1.5-degree Celsius retailer, under the Science-based Targets Initiative (SBTI) and emissions reduction goal. Zen Energy said it is committed to forming long-term and sustainable partnerships, delivering its plan in a way that is sensitive to the needs of Australia’s First Peoples, nature, and local communities.