French developer Neoen has been awarded a 300MW/four-hour capacity services contract by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) in a competitive tender initiated by the Western Australian Coordinator of Energy.
The service will be delivered by Stage 2 of Collie Battery sized at 341MW/1363 MWh and consisting of 348 Tesla Megapack 2 XL units.
The project is near the town of Collie, on the country of the Wilman people of the Bibbulmun nation, in Western Australia. It will connect to Western Power’s new Palmer Terminal substation in the South-West Interconnected System..
Neoen has provided notices to proceed to Tesla and construction contractor UGL signalling the start of construction for Stage 2 of Collie Battery, which is expected to be operational in fourth quarter 2025.
It follows on from the 219MW/877MWh Stage 1, which won a similar 197MW/four-hour contract with AEMO in June 2023, and is currently under construction and on track to start operating in fourth quarter 2024.
The AEMO Non-Co-optimised Essential System Services contract will run for a period of two years from 1 October 2025. Collie Battery Stage 2 will provide 300MW of storage capacity for four hours discharging across the evening peak.
This is intended to address the risks AEMO has identified related to the retirement of coal power plants, high penetration of rooftop solar and increasing energy demand in Western Australia.
The announcement takes Neoen Australia’s total asset portfolio to 4GW of capacity in operation or under construction, further cementing its position as the country’s largest developer, owner and operator of renewable energy.
The portfolio is balanced between the company’s three core technologies of solar (1.3GW), wind (1.1GW) and battery storage (1.7GW/4.2GWh) across six Australian states and territories.
“We are thrilled to have won this second NCESS contract and would like to thank AEMO, Western Power and the WA Government for their continued trust,” said Neoen Australia chief executive Louis de Sambucy.
“We are looking forward to the major contribution Collie Battery will make to supporting WA’s energy transition. I would also like to congratulate the team on reaching the milestone of 4GW of capacity in Australia – it represents an extraordinary collective effort over the past 12 years.”
Energy Policy WA’s coordinator of energy Jai Thomas said: “The Stage 2 Collie Battery project is another important step toward a greener and more resilient power system, made possible by the NCESS process administered by AEMO, created as part of the Western Australian Government’s Energy Transformation Strategy. Once complete, the battery will be a massive boost for energy storage and stability in the South West Interconnected System.”