The Ayala Group’s energy platform in the Philippines, ACEN Corporation, has been given permission to expand the size of its New England battery in New South Wales to 1.4 GW/2.8 GWh.
The state government’s wise choice was announced by ACEN Australia. It will supply on-demand energy for 175,000 homes after being expanded from the initially anticipated 200 MW/400 MWh to become Australia’s largest storage battery project associated with a solar farm.
The energy storage facility in Uralla in northern New South Wales will be constructed alongside the 720 MW New England solar farm and implemented in phases, just like the solar project. The first 400-MW stage of the photovoltaic (PV) plant went online in March.
According to ACEN Australia, the expansion will keep the battery’s location within the approved site boundary; the additional land is currently being used as “laydown areas” for stage one construction activities. The site was chosen specifically because of its proximity to a substation where it will connect to the electricity transmission network, the organization added.
In Australia, ACEN is working on projects totaling more than 1 GW. The company received two 20-year energy service agreements (LTESAs) after winning a New South Wales renewable energy tender with 1.1 GW of PV ideas.