Waratah Super Battery supercharges energy transition in NSW, Australia

Australia is not just a country; it’s a continent. The remoteness of the “Land Down Under” makes it unique as home to hundreds of animal and plant species found nowhere else on Earth. But when it comes to delivering reliable power, this isolation also presents a challenge, as the country is not able to connect to another electrical grid for backup power. As Australia brings more solar and wind energy onto the grid, ensuring reliability is priority number one. A new Super Battery now under construction — one of the largest in the southern hemisphere, supported by cutting-edge converter technology from Hitachi Energy — will enable Sydney, the nation’s largest city, to keep the lights on while helping Australia meet its renewable energy target of adding 33,000 gigawatt-hours (GWh) each year through 2030.

The ambitious project, led by Australia’s Akaysha Energy, features an 850-megawatt/1,680-megawatt-hour battery energy storage system (BESS) that will act as a giant shock absorber, cushioning the electrical grid against instability. The battery’s large size ensures reliable power delivery even in the event of a major transmission outage of one of the lines feeding Sydney and surrounds.

A super-sized solution

The Waratah Super Battery project is more than just a battery.

The BESS itself is located about 100 kilometers north of Sydney in the Central Coast Region, but the overall project also includes arrangements for paired generation services with wind and solar generators, upgrades to the State’s existing transmission network, and an overarching control system.

It will function as a network standby battery and “shock absorber” for the NSW energy system in the event of power surges from events like lightning strikes.

Hitachi Energy’s advanced power converter system is crucial to the battery’s performance as a grid stabilizer. The company has gained recognition by taking on hard-to-solve grid integration problems. Its work with utilities integrating renewables in Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Baja California — all remote locations with weak grids — prepared it well for helping to solve Sydney’s challenges, says Alberto Prieto, Manager for Power Conversion Solutions at Hitachi Energy.

To receive approval to work on an integration project in Australia, “you have to demonstrate to the regulator in Australia that you will support the grid,” he says. “It’s probably the hardest process in the world right now. They want to avoid any technical issues in their grid when they are using renewables because they are an island, and the grid is weak. They don’t have any interconnection with other countries, so they must ensure stability with their own resources.”

Prieto adds, “You have to take a global perspective, because the energy problem is a global problem.” Hitachi Energy’s resources and expertise allows the company to take on more complex projects, he adds.

A strong partnership

Akaysha Energy was appointed by the New South Wales infrastructure planner, EnergyCo, to develop the project and broke ground at the site of the decommissioned Munmorah Power Station in late May 2023. When the BESS is complete, there will be 288 Power Conversion Systems (PCS) which will stretch across the 137,000 square meter site, bigger than 8 Australian Football League fields.

Hitachi Energy’s technology and experience solving tough integration problems made it an ideal partner for the Waratah project.

With demand for battery energy storage systems surging, the project demonstrates the vital intersection of sustainability and energy technology, adds Massimo Danieli, Managing Director of Grid Automation for Hitachi Energy. “Energy storage and power electronics play a very important role for customers in the energy transformation,” he says. “They provide the flexibility our customers need.”

Successful pilot project

During a pilot project, Akaysha and Hitachi Energy installed super batteries they had engineered that incorporated innovative materials, advanced control systems, and efficient thermal management to enhance performance and ensure safety. The super batteries were installed to capture excess energy during periods of high generation and release it during peak demand, thereby balancing the grid’s energy supply and demand.

The collaboration between Akaysha and Hitachi Energy in developing and implementing super batteries for energy storage showcased the potential of cutting-edge technologies in supporting renewable energy integration and grid stability. The successful pilot project demonstrated the feasibility and benefits—including enhanced grid stability, increased renewable energy utilization, and peak shaving—of using super batteries for large-scale energy storage applications.

The battery of the future

The Waratah Super Battery is a key part of New South Wales’ effort to ensure the reliability and resilience of the electricity supply as the State’s coal plants retire, and as it moves to cut emissions 70 percent by 2035 and reach net zero by 2050.

“We are getting on with the job of delivering this critical infrastructure to ensure a secure, reliable and affordable energy supply to homes and businesses in Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong while new renewable energy zones and transmission connections are completed,” Ms Jordan said.

As Australia revs up its shift away from coal, Super Batteries like the Waratah BESS are becoming increasingly attractive as a way to provide foolproof stability for decades to come.