Blyth Big Battery Given Go-Ahead

Neoen announced late last week it’s all systems go for another of its big battery projects, this one in South Australia.

On Friday, the company said it had issued notices to proceed to contractors Elecnor and NHOA for the 200 MW / 400 MWh  Blyth Battery, which is to be situated 7.5 km west of the small town of Blyth in South Australia’s Mid-North region.

The primary function of the Blyth battery energy storage system (BESS) will be to “firm” 70MW of wind power generated by Goyder South Stage 1 under a contract with BHP, for its Olympic Dam mining operation in SA.

Firming refers to maintaining the output from a variable, intermittent renewables source such as such as wind or solar power for a committed period of time. Goyder South is a huge renewables project that will also pack a mighty solar power wallop when it is complete.

The Blyth BESS will connect to ElectraNet’s existing 275 kV network and be located directly adjacent to the existing ElectraNet Blyth West Substation.

“The advantage of the close proximity to the substation is that electrical connection infrastructure is minimised, which increases the performance and minimises cost,” says Neoen.

Blyth will also ultimately incorporate grid-forming inverter tech; enabling it to offer system stability services that have previously only been provided by synchronous generation such as coal and gas.

While most grid-scale batteries use “grid-following inverters”, which are susceptible to instability in a weak grid, the use of grid forming inverters strengthens a grid by increasing the stability of the voltage waveform.  Integrating grid-forming inverter technology at Blyth is being made possible with funding under the Australian Renewable Energy Agency’s (ARENA’s) Large Scale Battery Storage Funding Round.

“We are delighted to be building our second storage asset in South Australia, the state where we delivered the world’s first big battery back in 2017,” said Neoen Chairman and CEO Xavier Barbaro; referring to Hornsdale Power Reserve (aka the Tesla Big Battery). “Blyth Battery will play an essential role in providing 24/7 energy, serving as a template for future baseload contracts for our customers, both in Australia and in our other countries.”

Neoen is to also establish a community benefit-sharing scheme for the lifetime of the Blyth Battery, which is expected to start operations in 2025.

Neoen’s 5th Big Battery In Australia

This will be France-headquartered Neoen’s fifth large-scale BESS project either operating or under construction in Australia. Others include:

• Victorian Big Battery near Geelong VIC: 300 MW / 450 MWh capacity
• Hornsdale Power Reserve near Jamestown SA: 150 MW / 193.5 MWh capacity (originally 100MW / 129 MWh)
• Capital Battery near Fyshwick in the ACT: 100 MW / 200 MWh; currently under construction.

The construction go-ahead for the fourth project – the 200 MW / 400 MWh Western Downs Battery in Queensland – was announced in late December 2022. That is to be located within Neoen’s Western Downs Green Power Hub, adjacent to the company’s 460 MW solar farm. The Western Downs BESS is expected to be operational in 2024/25.