Green Power Generation (GPG) has brought online what it claims is Western Australia’s first grid-connected large-scale solar-plus-storage hybrid project.
The 128MW Cunderdin hybrid solar PV and battery energy storage system (BESS) project features a PV power plant accompanied by a co-located 55MW/220MWh 4-hour duration BESS. It is connected to the South West Interconnected System (SWIS) electricity grid.
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GPG confirmed that the solar PV power plant includes around 229,500 solar PV modules, and the BESS was supplied by energy storage and inverter supplier Sungrow. It required an investment of €172 million (US$188 million) to fully develop, with over AU$229,000 (US$138,000) allocated to community engagement and benefit-sharing initiatives.
The Cunderdin project represents Naturgy’s, a multinational energy company headquartered in Spain and owner of GPG, first hybridisation project globally. Naturgy secured the hybrid site in 2022.
Francisco Bustío, CEO of Global Power Generation, highlighted that the project sets “new global benchmarks for the renewable energy generation industry.”
GPG was aided in developing its Western Australia hybrid project by an AU$2.3 billion financing facility secured at the end of 2024. The financing was secured from 11 international banks and centred around GPG’s Australian portfolio, which consists of eight operating assets, including six wind farms, a BESS project, and the Cunderdin hybrid project.
Jai Thomas, Western Australia’s acting director general for the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety, attended the opening ceremony and said: “It is great to see Western Australia’s government’s energy market reforms underpin innovative projects such as this.”
108MW solar-plus-storage site submitted to Australia’s EPBC Act
In other news, developer Green Gold Energy has submitted plans for a 108MW solar-plus-storage site in South Australia, featuring a co-located 91.7MWh BESS, to the Australian government’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.
The Morgan Solar Farm is being proposed on a 622-hectare site located around eight kilometres northeast of the rural town of Morgan. It will be near the Murray River, Australia’s longest river, and around roughly 170km northeast of Adelaide.
A substation will be constructed as part of the solar PV plant to enable the site to connect to the grid and the National Electricity Market (NEM). It will be located adjacent to the existing high-voltage transmission line to minimise the need for additional overhead lines. The project is also designed to ensure agricultural practices can continue.
If the project receives EPBC approval, construction will begin later this year and last around 24 months. Green Gold Energy is proposing a 30 to 40-year operational lifespan for the project, with plans to bring the solar PV plant online by 2028.
These articles first appeared in full on our sister site, PV Tech, as the items ‘GPG inaugurates Western Australia’s first grid-connected large-scale hybrid solar-battery project’ and ‘Green Gold Energy submits 108MW solar-plus-storage site to Australia’s EPBC Act’.
