TagEnergy locks in 15-year toll deal for Golden Plains battery in Australia

TagEnergy has signed a 105 MW, four-hour virtual toll agreement with Australian government-owned generator and retailer Snowy Hydro for its Golden Plains battery energy storage system (BESS) being developed in western Victoria.

The 15-year deal comes as TagEnergy prepares to start building the battery alongside its Golden Plains Wind Farm, where the 756 MW first stage is undergoing final commissioning testing, and construction is underway on the 577 MW second stage.

Construction proper of the standalone BESS is expected to commence in early 2026, with the storage facility expected to begin operating in late 2027.

TagEnergy Managing Partner Andrew Riggs said the virtual tolling agreement will provide financial certainty and stability for the project.

“It will provide TagEnergy with a predictable revenue stream to balance market exposure from trading remaining capacity as merchant,” he said. “And it will support integration of more renewable energy into the grid to balance the intermittency of wind-generated power for a more resilient, reliable and stable power supply.”

For Snowy Hydro, the deal delivers the benefits of accessing storage products in the National Electricity Market (NEM) without the construction and capital burden.

“This virtual toll arrangement will enable Snowy to leverage the flexibility of our storage assets without needing to build, own or operate their own,” Riggs said.

Snowy Hydro Chief Executive Officer Dennis Barnes said the Golden Plains deal adds a new short-duration storage layer to the company’s portfolio, and will work closely with its current hydro assets and long-duration pumped hydro storage, including the Snowy Scheme and the Snowy 2.0 expansion, to dispatch energy into the grid at peak times and remove excess when demand is low.

“This new virtual storage agreement complements our portfolio of on-demand generation and gives us the fast-start power we need to quickly soak up excess wind and solar, and stabilise the grid at times of volatility,” he said.

The agreement comes after Snowy Hydro earlier this year signed a 15-year, 220 MW, four-hour virtual tolling agreement with Akaysha Energy for the 311 MW / 1,244 MWh Elaine battery project being built in southwest Victoria.

It has also signed a long-term power purchase agreement with Aula Energy to procure 120 MW of renewable energy from the Carmody’s Hill Wind Farm in South Australia.

These contracts bring Snowy Hydro’s total contracted wind, solar, and battery storage capacity close to 2,200 MW fostering the development of more than 3,600 MW of renewables and firming projects in Australia.

Barnes said the deals enhance Snowy Hydro’s ability to offer cost-effective and flexible solutions to its mass-market, commercial, and wholesale customers.

“These new contracts enhance our role as an end-to-end generator and retailer, supporting the strong growth of Snowy’s retail brands, which now serve more than 1.6 million retail customers,” he said.

From pv magazine Australia.