Australia closed on a record 3.9 GWh of battery storage capacity in July-to-September

The latest quarterly assessment by Australia’s CEC showed investment in energy storage projects continued to power ahead between July and September 2024, with eight new battery systems that will provide a record 1,235 MW/3,862 MWh of storage capacity reaching financial commitment. That figure was up 95% compared to the same period of 2023. The CEC said the storage investment commitments totalled at least AUD 1.2 billion ($789 million), with several projects not providing publicly available investment data.

There were also 10 new large-scale solar and wind energy generation projects with 1,405 MW of generation capacity and a combined value of AUD 3.3 billion which achieved a final investment decision in the three months to the end of September 2024.

The 1,405 MW of new generation capacity committed in the quarter exceeded the annual total for 2023 and marked the first time new generation projects reaching financial commitment surpassed 1 GW in a quarter since late 2022. The rolling 12-month quarterly average for capacity of financially committed generation projects has now increased for three quarters in a row.

CEC Chief Executive Officer Kane Thornton said the latest “Renewables Projects Quarterly Report” reflected that conditions are gradually improving for the sector.

“The increasing activity indicates that the challenging economic conditions are beginning to ease and the hard work by government agencies and industry to address a wide range of legacy issues across our grid, planning, and institutional settings, are starting to bear fruit,” said Thornton.

The commitments made in third quarter mean 34 generation and battery energy storage projects have reached financial close in 2024. That equates to 3 GW of new generation capacity and 2.8 GW/8 GWh of new energy storage across Australia.

There are now 89 renewable electricity generation projects that have either reached financial commitment or are under construction, representing 13.9 GW of capacity in the pipeline.

In the case of energy storage, 49 projects are in the pipeline from financial commitment onward, equivalent to 9.7 GW/24.3 GWh of capacity.

The CEC said more than 40% of Australia’s electricity supply now comes from renewable energy, including hydro, solar, and wind, with the renewable energy share expected to climb to almost 50% by the end of 2025, based on the projects under construction today.

Thornton added, however, despite the positive quarterly result more needs to be done to meet the federal government’s target of 82% renewable energy generation by 2030.

Australia needs to add between 6 GW and 7 GW of new renewable energy generation capacity every year to achieve that target, an average of at least 1.5 GW each quarter.

“If we sustain the level of investment for new wind and solar power plants which we have seen in the third quarter of this year, we can get back on track to achieving Australia’s target of 82% renewable energy generation by 2030,” Thornton said. “There is a lot more work still to be done, but the signs are encouraging.”

From pv magazine Australia.