The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) has seen 18.1GW of battery energy storage systems (BESS) seeking a connection to the National Electricity Market (NEM) at the end of 2024.
AMEO said that at the end of 2024, the connections pipeline for the NEM stood at 49.6GW, up 36% year-on-year, with BESS accounting for 18.1GW of this figure.
Over 3.5GW of BESS completed NEM connection application stage in Q4
AEMO reported that 20 projects completed the application stage in Q4 2024. Of this total, BESS accounted for 3,575MW, solar PV plants totalled 687MW, solar-plus-storage projects reached 200MW, and wind generation contributed 478MW.
In the same quarter, 11 projects were registered, including 831MW of solar PV, 440MW of wind, and 350MW of BESS. 52% of the registered capacity was in New South Wales, which recently set a new solar generation state record with a maximum output of 3,525MW on 21 January.
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This is according to the organisation’s latest Connections Scorecard, which outlines that the NEM’s connections pipeline rose by 36% year over year to 49.6GW. Around 36% of this capacity was in New South Wales, 32% in Queensland, 21% in Victoria and 10% in South Australia.
This growing pipeline to connect to the NEM showcases progress in Australia’s renewable energy sector. Indeed, considering the NEM’s current total generation and energy storage capacity stands at 66GW, adding nearly 50GW of new capacity is a significant pipeline for the future energy supply.
“Project registrations in the last six months are more than double those in the previous 12 months. This surge reflects the wave of application approvals in 2023,” said AEMO onboarding and connections group manager Margarida Pimentel.
“The scorecard data also reveals that 18.1GW out of the 49.6GW within the connections pipeline are battery projects, representing a 97% increase on the 9.2GW in progress during the same time last year.”
South Australia solar project approved with 400MWh BESS
In other news from Australia, solar PV developer Green Gold Energy has received consent from the South Australian government for a 200MW solar-plus-storage site located in the Australian Plains region, a rural locality in the Mid North region of South Australia, situated 127km northeast of Adelaide.
The Australian Plains Solar project will be located over 325 hectares of land in South Australia. South Australia-headquartered solar PV developer Green Gold Energy is pursuing it.
It will connect to the NEM via the Robertstown Substation, where a future interconnector connecting South Australia to New South Wales is set to be constructed.
Transmission operators ElectraNet and Transgrid are developing the 900km EnergyConnect interconnector, which will enhance the capacity and flow of renewable energy between the two states.
The project will feature a 200MW/400MWh BESS with a duration of 2-hours. Construction of the site will take place later this year and last for 18 months.
“We are delighted to announce that the Australian Plains Solar & Battery Energy Storage System project has officially received development approval,” Green Gold Energy wrote in a LinkedIn post.
“With its connection to the Robertstown Substation and the future interconnector linking South Australia to New South Wales, the project will help power households locally and beyond.”
These stories appeared as separate items on PV Tech, our solar PV technology website. Read the originals here:
Gold Green Energy secure consent for 200MW solar-plus-storage site in South Australia
AEMO: Australia’s NEM sees connections pipeline grow to 50GW
