Fluence to optimize Akaysha Energy’s battery assets

Akaysha Energy, battery storage developer backed by US asset management giant BlackRock, has partnered with Fluence Energy to deploy AI-powered bidding optimisation software Fluence Mosaic at its flagship projects in Australia.

Mosaic will be implemented at the 850 MW / 1,680 MWh Waratah Super Battery, the 150 MW/ 300 MWh Ulinda Park, and 415 MW/ 1660 MWh Orana Battery.

The Warath Super Battery, which was energized in September, is the centrepiece of the NSW government’s plan to deliver greater reliability and resilience to the grid as coal power exits the system. The system, which is backed by a near-five-year contract from NSW’s EnergyCo, will act as a “shock absorber” for the electricity grid, with up to 700 MW / 1,400 MWh ready to respond in the event of sudden power surges such as those caused by a lightning strike or bushfire. The remaining capacity will be used to access additional revenue streams.

The Orana battery system, located about two kilometres northeast of Wellington within the Central-West Orana Renewable Energy Zone (REZ) in NSW, will provide energy arbitrage and grid-firming capability to support Australia’s National Electricity Market and its rapid expansion of solar and wind projects. The project has a 12-year ‘virtual toll’ offtake agreement with electricity generator and retailer EnergyAustralia for 200 MW of contracted capacity, which will allow EnergyAustralia to virtually access almost half the plant’s capacity within pre-agreed daily bidding parameters, separate from the physical operation of the battery by Akaysha.

The Ulinda Park is developed adjacent to the Western Downs substation at Hopeland near Chinchilla in Queensland’s Western Downs region. Construction is underway at the two-hour battery storage system, which is expected to deliver energy arbitrage and frequency control ancillary services (FCAS), to support the rapid expansion of solar and wind projects on the main grid, once operational in 2025.

Both Warath and Ulinda Park will use Powin battery technology, while the Orana battery system will feature Tesla Megapack technology.

Fluence, the joint venture between Siemens and AES Corporation, will provide its technology-agnostic, bidding optimization software to automate their wholesale market participation. Its Mosaic platform incorporates detailed market rules and real-time data and uses machine learning to forecast electricity prices and automatically develop optimized bids for relevant markets.

In addition to the Australian National Electricity Market (NEM), Mosaic is also available in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) and  the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) wholesale power markets. In Australia, Mosaic can support both renewables and energy storage in real time markets with energy and all frequency control anciliary services.